# Hotline
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{{Short description|Automatically directed point-to-point communications link}}
{{Hatnote|A hotline in the other widespread sense is a [helpline](/source/helpline). For other uses, see [Hotline (disambiguation)](/source/Hotline_(disambiguation)).}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2015}}
[[File:Jimmy Carter Library and Museum 99.JPG|thumb|right|A typical non-dial red phone used for hotlines. This one is a prop which is on display in the Jimmy Carter Library and Museum, erroneously representing the [Moscow–Washington hotline](/source/Moscow%E2%80%93Washington_hotline).[[http://electrospaces.blogspot.nl/2013/08/the-red-phone-that-was-not-on-hotline.html The red phone that was NOT on the Hotline]. electrospaces.blogspot.nl. 30 August 2013]]]
A '''hotline''' is a [point-to-point](/source/Point-to-point_(telecommunications)) [communications](/source/information_transfer) [link](/source/Data_link) in which a [call](/source/telephone_call) is automatically directed to the preselected destination without any additional action by the [user](/source/User_(telecommunications)) when the [end instrument](/source/end_instrument) goes [off-hook](/source/off-hook).[Derived from [Federal Standard 1037C](/source/Federal_Standard_1037C)] An example would be a phone that automatically connects to emergency services on picking up the receiver. Therefore, dedicated hotline phones do not need a rotary dial or keypad. A hotline can also be called an automatic [signaling](/source/Signaling_(telecommunications)), [ringdown](/source/ringdown), or off-hook service.
== For crises and service ==
True hotlines cannot be used to originate calls other than to preselected destinations. However, in common or colloquial usage, a "hotline" often refers to a [call center](/source/call_center) reachable by dialing a standard telephone number, or sometimes the phone numbers themselves.
This is especially the case with 24-hour, noncommercial numbers, such as police tip hotlines or suicide [crisis hotline](/source/crisis_hotline)s, which are staffed around the clock and thereby give the appearance of real hotlines. Increasingly, however, the term is found being applied to any customer service telephone number.
==Between states==
=== Russia–United States ===
[[File:Hotline sign in finland.jpg|thumb|upright|In [Finland](/source/Finland) there are still several signs marking the location of the [Moscow–Washington hotline](/source/Moscow%E2%80%93Washington_hotline) cable. This one is in [Forssa](/source/Forssa). The text reads "Post and telegraph department".]]
The most famous hotline between states is the [Moscow–Washington hotline](/source/Moscow%E2%80%93Washington_hotline), also known as the "red telephone", although telephones have never been used in this capacity. This direct communications link was established on June 20, 1963, in the wake of the [Cuban Missile Crisis](/source/Cuban_Missile_Crisis), which convinced both sides of the need for better communications.[{{cite web |author1=U.S. State Department |title=Hot Line Agreement (1963) |url=https://www.atomicarchive.com/resources/treaties/hot-line.html |publisher=Atomic Archive |access-date=August 30, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220830092829/https://www.atomicarchive.com/resources/treaties/hot-line.html |archive-date=August 30, 2022}}] It was used for the first time by U.S. President [John F. Kennedy](/source/John_F._Kennedy) on August 30, 1963[{{Cite web |title=This Day in History - August 30, 1963: Hotline established between Washington and Moscow |url=https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/hotline-established-between-washington-and-moscow |access-date=2023-05-06 |website=HISTORY |language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230520160045/https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/hotline-established-between-washington-and-moscow|archive-date=May 20, 2023}}] and utilized teletypewriter technology, later replaced by telecopier and then by electronic mail.{{Citation needed|date=July 2023}}
=== United Kingdom–United States ===
During [World War II](/source/World_War_II)—two decades before the Washington–Moscow hotline was established—there was a hotline between [No. 10 Downing Street](/source/No._10_Downing_Street), the [Cabinet War Room](/source/Churchill_War_Rooms) bunker under the Treasury, Whitehall, and the [White House](/source/White_House) in Washington, D.C. From 1943 to 1946, this link was made secure by using the first voice encryption machine, called [SIGSALY](/source/SIGSALY).
=== China–Russia ===
A hotline connection between [Beijing](/source/Beijing) and [Moscow](/source/Moscow) was used during the 1969 frontier confrontation between the two countries. The Chinese refused the Russian peace attempts and ended the communications link. After a reconciliation between the two countries, the hotline between China and Russia was revived in 1996.[{{cite news|last=Egilsson|first=Haraldur|title=The Origins, Use and Development of Hotline Diplomacy|url=http://www.clingendael.nl/publications/2003/20030500_cli_paper_dip_issue85.pdf|access-date=22 January 2013|newspaper=Discussion Papers in Diplomacy|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110911055513/http://www.clingendael.nl/publications/2003/20030500_cli_paper_dip_issue85.pdf|archive-date=11 September 2011|url-status=dead}}]
=== France–Russia ===
On his visit to the Soviet Union in 1966, French President [Charles de Gaulle](/source/Charles_de_Gaulle) announced that a hotline would be established between Paris and Moscow. The line was upgraded from a telex to a high-speed fax machine in 1989.[{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/india-and-pakistan-to-have-nuclear-hotline-732980.html|title=India and Pakistan to have nuclear hotline|work=[The Independent](/source/The_Independent)}}]
=== China–United States ===
{{main|Beijing–Washington hotline}}
The United States and [China](/source/China) set up a defense hotline in 2008, but it has rarely been used in crises.[{{cite news|last=Gienger|first=Viola|title=China-U.S. Defense Hotline Shows Gulf Between Nations|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-05-13/china-u-s-defense-hotline-shows-gulf.html|access-date=5 March 2012|newspaper=Bloomberg|date=13 May 2011}}]
=== China–India ===
India and China announced a hotline for the foreign ministers of both countries while reiterating their commitment to strengthening ties and building "mutual political trust".[{{cite web|url=http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/finally-a-hotline-between-india-and-china-63893 |title=Finally, a hotline between India and China |publisher=Ndtv.com |date=1 November 2010 |access-date=21 January 2012}}] As of August 2015 the hotline was yet to be made operational.[{{cite web|url=http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/narendra-modi-barack-obama-hotline-becomes-operational/|title=Narendra Modi-Barack Obama hotline becomes operational|date=21 August 2015}}]
=== China–Japan ===
In February 2013, the [Senkaku Islands dispute](/source/Senkaku_Islands_dispute) gave renewed impetus to a China–Japan hotline, which had been agreed to but due to rising tensions had not been established.[[https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1146826/japan-suggests-hotline-beijing-over-island-spat Japan suggests hotline to Beijing over island spat]. scmp.com. 9 February 2013]
=== North and South Korea ===
Between North and South Korea there are over 40 [direct phone lines](/source/Seoul-Pyongyang_hotline), the first of which was opened in September 1971. Most of these hotlines run through the [Panmunjeom](/source/Panmunjeom) [Joint Security Area](/source/Joint_Security_Area) (JSA) and are maintained by the [Red Cross](/source/Red_Cross). Since 1971, North Korea has deactivated the hotlines seven times, the last time in February 2016. After [Kim Jong-un](/source/Kim_Jong-un)'s New Years address, the border hotline was reopened on January 3, 2018.[[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-42549161 North Korea reopens hotline to South to discuss Olympics] BBC News 3 January 2018]
=== India–United States ===
In August 2015 the hotline between the [White House](/source/White_House) and New Delhi became operational. The decision of establishing this hotline was taken during President [Barack Obama](/source/Barack_Obama)'s visit to India in January 2015. This is the first hotline connecting an Indian Prime Minister to a head of state.[PTI [http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/narendra-modi-barack-obama-hotline-becomes-operational "Modi-Obama hotline becomes operational"], ''[The Indian Express](/source/The_Indian_Express)'', Washington, 21 August 2015. Retrieved on 22 August 2015.]
== See also ==
* [Bat phone](/source/Bat_phone)
* [Complaint system](/source/Complaint_system)
== References ==
== External links ==
* [http://electrospaces.blogspot.nl/2012/11/bilateral-hotlines-worldwide.html Top Level Telecommunications: Bilateral Hotlines Worldwide]
Category:Telecommunication services
Category:Hotlines between countries
[de:Heißer Draht](/source/de%3AHei%C3%9Fer_Draht)
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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Hotline](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotline) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotline?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.