History of South America

Why did the United states and Soviet union install a hot line telephone system?

The United States and the Soviet Union installed a "Hotline Agreement"- more formally known as the Direct Communication Link Treaty or Hotline Treaty- in August 1963 at the peak of the Cold War for direct, rapid, and secure communications in times of emergency, reducing risk from miscommunications about missile launches (e.g., false alarms from accidental or unauthorized launches ).

Each communication between the superpowers' leaders during emergencies and moments of increased tensions could take hours over other diplomatic or military channels which had the danger of causing miscalculations when time was urgent.