Preemptive strike
A preemptive strike is a military strike by one faction against another, believed to be planning an attack themselves.

After a disastrous first contact with the Klingons, the Vulcans developed a policy of shooting on sight, which ultimately earned the Klingons' respect. ()

In 2153, the Xindi launched a preemptive strike against Earth after being told, by beings from the future, that they themselves would be destroyed by the Humans. The probe they sent wiped out seven million people, carving a swath of destruction from Florida through Cuba to Venezuela. ()

In 2154, Ambassador Soval informed Commander Tucker that Vulcan Intelligence claimed the Andorians had developed a weapon based on Xindi technology and that they were planning on using it against Vulcan. Administrator V'Las used this claim to persuade the Vulcan High Command to launch a preemptive strike against Andoria, despite the peace treaty that was signed two years prior. ()

As of the 2250s, Starfleet had a policy against preemptive strikes. Despite this, in 2256, first officer of  Michael Burnham proposed a preemptive strike on the Sarcophagus to Captain Philippa Georgiou, after consulting with Sarek on how the Vulcans achieved "peace" with the Klingons. When Georgiou refused, Burnham incapacitated her with a Vulcan nerve pinch, took over command, and attempted to order the strike. Burnham enjoyed no support from the crew, and Georgiou quickly recovered and ordered her arrested for mutiny. ()

In an alternate future, William T. Riker was awarded the Starfleet Medal of Honor at stardate 51682 for his role in detecting and preventing a Romulan preemptive strike in the Gamma Hydra Sector. ( okudagram)

Following Chancellor Gowron's demand that the Federation leave the Archanis sector, Jadzia Dax spoke to a friend of Curzon's in the Diplomatic Corps, who told her that several planets near the Klingon border were urging Starfleet to make a preemptive strike. ()

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