MINNEAPOLIS — Retired Army Gen. John Vessey, who rose through the ranks in a 46-year military career to become chairman of the joint chiefs of staff and help oversee President Ronald Reagan’s military buildup, has died.
After being named chairman of the joint chiefs in 1982, Gen. Vessey managed the military expansion that Reagan championed when he took office just over a year earlier.
Gen. Vessey said the Soviet Union had been making a “big push” to solidify its position in Europe, deploying SS20 intermediate-range nuclear missiles and strengthening its ground forces in East Germany, “dabbling” in West European elections, and stepping up its espionage.
By the time Gen. Vessey retired in 1985, he said, NATO was strong once again, the United States had deployed Pershing II and cruise missiles in response to the Soviet SS20s, and negotiations with the Soviets to eliminate each side’s intermediate-range missiles were just about complete.
While Gen. Vessey generally wielded his influence in military and foreign policy circles away from the public spotlight after he retired, he made news in 2006 when he spoke out against a push to weaken protections under the Geneva Conventions against torture of prisoners, particularly as they applied to suspected terrorists.
