Nuclear Posture Review Spells out Plans for Using Nukes
The Bush administration is dangerously wobbling over the line between nuclear and non-nuclear warfare. The administration spells out its nuclear weapons plans in the Nuclear Posture Review (NPR), classified sections of which were recently leaked to the L.A. Times. Despite the twelve years that have passed since the end of the Cold War, the report includes a broad sweep of new nuclear weapons for development, opens the door to nuclear testing and identifies countries targeted for potential attack with nuclear weapons.
The President recklessly intends to expand the scope of circumstances under which nuclear weapons would be used, blurring the line between conventional and nuclear warfare. The NPR broadens potential nuclear targets to include Iraq, Iran, North Korea, Libya, Syria, China and even our ally, Russia. According to William M. Arkin in the Los Angeles Times ("Secret Plan Outlines the Unthinkable," 3/10/01), the US plans to use nuclear weapons in what would formerly have been conventional missions. The NPR specifically states that the Administration would consider using nuclear weapons against China in a military confrontation over Taiwan, nuking Iraq should that country attack Israel or another country, launching a nuclear attack against North Korea should it attack South Korea, and using nukes in the Arab-Israeli conflict. The US may use nuclear weapons in retaliation for a non-nuclear attack, or "in the event of surprising military developments." According to Arkin, "officials are looking for nuclear weapons that could play a role in the kinds of challenges the United States faces with Al Qaeda."
In addition to broadening the potential use of nuclear weapons, the administration plans to more fully integrate nuclear forces in conventional warfare and intends sweeping upgrades for the US nuclear arsenal. The NPR includes plans to modify conventional cruise missiles, along with the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, to carry nuclear warheads. It also calls for the development of "bunker busters," nuclear weapons that would be used in conventional conflict to destroy underground complexes. The NPR calls for more resources to be dedicated to upgrading the US nuclear weapons infrastructure, in order to further develop, produce, and test nuclear weapons.
While nuclear weapons haven't been used for fifty years, we cannot forget the horror of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. We can't allow ourselves to forget that nuclear weapons are indiscriminate, mass killers that not only kill through their blast, but also through radiation. The use of nuclear weapons would exponentially increase the casualties of any US attack, poison the area being attacked for decades and cause the slow, cruel death of those in the radiation affected area. There is a reason that nuclear weapons have not been used in fifty years - their use is a crime against humanity.
The President's emphasis on the use of nuclear weapons gives them new legitimacy and is likely to have destabilizing and dangerous results. This kind of nuclear step up can only encourage nuclear proliferation, increasing the possibility that nuclear weapons will fall into the hands of terrorists. Had the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center been nuclear, many hundreds of thousands of casualties could have resulted. Furthermore, the President's 'do as I say, not as I do' attitude of intimidation is already breeding further resentment toward the US.
The consideration to use nuclear weapons lacks regard for morality, life, and world peace. While the current administration has spoken of moving past the tenets of mutually assured destruction, it's actions unilaterally assure the destruction of any hopes for arms control and global stability.
The NPR release has been met with sharp international criticism. Yet, the criticism here at home has been disquietingly silent. Surely there are leaders within this country who would stand up to stop us from reeking nuclear anarchy upon the world. Where are they?
Take Action
Call, write or e-mail your members of Congress today. Tell them that twelve years after the end of the Cold War, the administration is pulling the US, and the world, in the wrong direction. It is time for us to move away from nuclear weapons, not make them more usable. What will they do to stop the US from following this dangerous path?
