For the last few decades, cruise missiles have been increasingly used and are in the process of unabated spread. While the major powers have used this Big Stick conveniently in increasing numbers, the developing countries find in them the poor man’s arsenal. But why and how they have evolved, and what its likely implications, are not seriously been debated.

This study, therefore, is an endeavour to define various contours of cruise missiles and their evolution which now seem moving towards a matured stage. It identifies the trend and nuances of cruise missile spread by enquiring the utility, motive and future of them in different strategic scenarios. While visualising cruise missiles as the weapons of the future, the book suggests for a joint approach of cruise missile control and defence to contain their spread and to manage the threat.