“The Soviets were worried that the Americans would attack their "sparkling new Mir space station, ... in a space shuttle, throw out grappling hooks, forcibly board the peaceful habitat and claim it as captured territory. To the hard-core Soviet mind-set, the American government was an unstable combination of cowboys and gangsters, unpredictable and capable of any insane action. The cosmonauts would have to be armed against outrageous aggression.” Cold WarParanoiaGangstersPiratesSpace ProgramCowboysRussians Book:Atomic Adventures: Secret Islands, Forgotten N-Rays, and Isotopic Murder Source: Atomic Adventures: Secret Islands, Forgotten N-Rays, and Isotopic Murder