Drifting Into A Nuclear War
WASHINGTON, July 24, 2003
(AP) Nuclear bombs are likely to be used before the end of the decade if the
United States doesn't do more to stop their spread, a group that advises
Senate Democrats said Wednesday.
One key step would be to begin direct talks with North Korea to negotiate an
end to its nuclear program, said the National Security Advisory Group, which
includes former top officials of the Clinton administration.
Former Defense Secretary William Perry, the group's chairman, said North
Korea could have six to eight nuclear bombs by the end of the year and could
have "serial production" next year.
"We must anticipate, given North Korea's desperate economic condition, that
some of the products of their nuclear program will be for sale to the
highest bidder and could end up in an American city," Perry said at a news
conference.
The Bush administration has said North Korea's nuclear program is a regional
problem and should be resolved with multilateral talks involving South
Korea, Japan and China. North Korea is already believed to have one or two
nuclear bombs. North Korea wants talks with just the United States.
"If we cannot resolve the conflict through negotiation, we may drift into a
situation where this policy conflict erupts into a military conflict," Perry
said.
In addition to North Korea, Perry cited the dangers of nuclear programs in
India, Pakistan and Iran.
The advisory group also includes former Secretary of State Madeleine
Albright, former national security adviser Sandy Berger, former NATO Supreme
Commander Gen. Wesley Clark and former Joint Chiefs chairman Gen. John
Shalikashvili.
It was formed in March "partly in response to the perception that Democrats
have been indifferent to national security problems and defense," a
perception that "flies in the face of the historical role that Democrats
have played in national security," Perry said in a report released by the
group.
The group recommended limiting defense spending increases and shifting the
money to other national security priorities, such as homeland security,
intelligence and foreign aid.
It also recommended working more closely with allies to fight terrorism and
nuclear proliferation.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/07/24/world/main564946.shtml
--
"From the brief time that we did spend occupying Iraqi territory after the
war, I am certain that had we taken all of Iraq, we would have been like the
dinosaur in the tar pit – we would still be there, and we, not the United
Nations, would be bearing the costs of the occupation. This is a burden I am
sure the beleaguered American taxpayer would not have been happy to take
on."
– Norman Schwarzkopf, from his 1993 autobiography, "It Doesn't Take a Hero."
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