Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Scepticism and wariness in U.S. on al-Zawahiri's appointment
From The Hindu
A day after a militant website confirmed that al-Qaeda had chosen Egyptian cleric Ayman al-Zawahiri to succeed Osama bin Laden as its chief, United States Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen vowed that the U.S. would seek to capture and kill al-Zawahiri as it had bin Laden.
Commenting on the elevation of al-Zawahiri, Admiral Mullen said al-Qaeda “still threaten us,” despite having suffered a “huge loss” with the killing of bin Laden and others.
At the same briefing, when asked why he thought it had taken al-Qaeda seven weeks to pick a new chief, Defence Secretary Robert Gates quipped, “It's probably tough to count votes when you're in a cave.”
Mr. Gates argued that unlike bin Laden, who was the leader of al-Qaeda since its inception, al- Zawahiri lacked a “peculiar charisma” and was operationally less engaged than bin Laden had been. Yet others cautioned that under al-Zawahiri, for whose arrest the FBI is offering $25 million, al-Qaeda would continue to be a serious threat to U.S. national security.
Bill Roggio, military affairs analyst and Managing Editor of The Long War Journal, told CNN, “[Al-Zawahiri] has been a very public official. He's very well known in the rank and file. There [are] a lot of questions on how he's perceived in the ranks, but even bin Laden had his detractors.” In an earlier video message, al-Zawahiri himself had indicated that al- Qaeda would continue with bin Laden's mission, saying, “Today, and thanks be to God, America is not facing an individual or a group, but a rebelling nation, which has awoken from its sleep in a jihadist renaissance.”
Secretary Gates did admit that al-Qaeda sought to perpetuate itself, “seeks to find replacements for those who have been killed and remains committed to the agenda that bin Laden put before them.”
He also alluded to possible suspicions in al-Qaeda that Pakistan’s may have had a role in the killing of bin Laden, saying, “There is some indication that al-Qaeda is worried that – because of the way we went after bin Laden, their suspicion is that the Pakistanis may have been involved in it and are worried that the Pakistanis may betray them as well.”
Labels: al-Qaeda chief, Ayman al-Zawahri, Defence Secretary, Mike Mullen, Osama bin Laden, Robert Gates
Friday, June 10, 2011
Gates finds Europe wanting in NATO
United States Defence Secretary Robert Gates launched a stinging critique of European countries' inadequate contributions to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, even as he wound up a last tour abroad before his June 30 retirement.
Speaking to media in Brussels after the Shangri-La conference in Singapore, Mr. Gates said NATO faced a “dim, if not dismal” future and risked “collective military irrelevance”.
Warning that the U.S.' support for NATO operations may be reconsidered in light of the domestic economic situation, Mr. Gates said: “America's serious fiscal situation is now putting pressure on our defence budget, and we are in a process of assessing where the U.S. can or cannot accept more risk as a result of reducing the size of our military.”
Citing NATO engagement in both Afghanistan and Libya as examples of the U.S.' disproportionately large support relative to European members' contributions, Mr. Gates spoke of how the organisation had become a “two-tiered alliance between members who specialise in ‘soft' humanitarian, development, peacekeeping and... those conducting the ‘hard' combat missions.” This dichotomy was “unacceptable”, he added.
Mr. Gates admitted that in Afghanistan the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force comprised approximately 40,000 non-U.S. troops of whom more than 850 “have made the ultimate sacrifice”.
Yet, he pointed out the Afghanistan experience had exposed serious alliance shortcomings in military capabilities and in political will and “Despite more than two million troops in uniform — not counting the U.S. military — NATO has struggled, at times desperately, to sustain a deployment of 25,000 to 45,000 troops.”
In a sharply-worded criticism of European NATO-members' military capabilities in Libya, Mr. Gates said despite all the alliance member voting for the Libya mission, “less than half have participated, and fewer than a third have been willing to participate in the strike mission... Frankly, many of those allies sitting on the sidelines do so not because they do not want to participate, but simply because they can't.”
Highlighting the U.S.' frustration with prolonged military engagements where it had to take the lead, Mr. Gates also said the “blunt reality” was there would be “dwindling appetite and patience in the U.S. Congress and in the American body politic writ large to expend increasingly precious funds on behalf of nations that are apparently unwilling to devote the necessary resources or make the necessary changes to be serious and capable partners in their own defence.”
Labels: Europe-U.S. ties, NATO, Robert Gates, Shangri-La conference
Friday, June 03, 2011
U.S. not trying to hold China down: Gates
Taking forward the United States' conciliatory approach towards China, possibly in anticipation of a major fighter aircraft sale to Taiwan later this year, U.S. Defence Secretary Robert Gates said that his country was “not trying to hold China down.”
Speaking to media on the eve of the Shangri-La talks between the U.S. and East Asian nations, Mr. Gates said China had been a “great power for thousands of years.” He added that China “is a global power and will be a global power.” The Secretary's comments came in the wake of recent moves between the U.S. and China, to bring greater rapprochement to a bilateral relationship that hit a frosty low last year. Following U.S. President Barack Obama's announcement of a major weapons sale to Taiwan in January 2010, Beijing severed all military ties with Washington.
Notwithstanding Mr. Gates' efforts, history could well be on the brink of repeating itself as last week 45 Senators from both sides of the U.S. Congress urged the White House to press forward with the sale of 66 new F-16 C/D fighters to Taiwan.
“Without new fighter aircraft and upgrades to its existing fleet of F-16s, Taiwan will be dangerously exposed to Chinese military threats, aggression and provocation, which pose significant national security implications for the United States,” said the Senators in their letter.
Mr. Gates echoed similar sentiments on the U.S.' interests in Taiwan, however treading a careful line with regards to the implications of this for China. He said while the U.S. did have obligations under the Taiwan Relations Act, under both the Bush and Obama administrations, it had tried to “thread the needle pretty carefully in terms of Taiwan's defensive capabilities, but at the same time being aware of China's sensitivities.”
When the U.S. invited the People's Liberation Army Chief of General Staff Chen Bingde to Washington recently as part of the broader attempt to reset military-to-military relations, the Chinese General was reported to have “renewed his objection to any U.S. arms sales to Taiwan.” Yet even General Bingde sought to water down recent calls in the U.S. for more transparency in Chinese military capabilities, particularly in terms of their focus on Taiwan. Arguing that American claims of Chinese military capabilities are exaggerated, the General said “China's efforts to enhance... military capabilities is mainly targeted at separatist forces ... who have attempted to split Taiwan away from China.”
Speaking to media on the eve of the Shangri-La talks between the U.S. and East Asian nations, Mr. Gates said China had been a “great power for thousands of years.” He added that China “is a global power and will be a global power.” The Secretary's comments came in the wake of recent moves between the U.S. and China, to bring greater rapprochement to a bilateral relationship that hit a frosty low last year. Following U.S. President Barack Obama's announcement of a major weapons sale to Taiwan in January 2010, Beijing severed all military ties with Washington.
Notwithstanding Mr. Gates' efforts, history could well be on the brink of repeating itself as last week 45 Senators from both sides of the U.S. Congress urged the White House to press forward with the sale of 66 new F-16 C/D fighters to Taiwan.
“Without new fighter aircraft and upgrades to its existing fleet of F-16s, Taiwan will be dangerously exposed to Chinese military threats, aggression and provocation, which pose significant national security implications for the United States,” said the Senators in their letter.
Mr. Gates echoed similar sentiments on the U.S.' interests in Taiwan, however treading a careful line with regards to the implications of this for China. He said while the U.S. did have obligations under the Taiwan Relations Act, under both the Bush and Obama administrations, it had tried to “thread the needle pretty carefully in terms of Taiwan's defensive capabilities, but at the same time being aware of China's sensitivities.”
When the U.S. invited the People's Liberation Army Chief of General Staff Chen Bingde to Washington recently as part of the broader attempt to reset military-to-military relations, the Chinese General was reported to have “renewed his objection to any U.S. arms sales to Taiwan.” Yet even General Bingde sought to water down recent calls in the U.S. for more transparency in Chinese military capabilities, particularly in terms of their focus on Taiwan. Arguing that American claims of Chinese military capabilities are exaggerated, the General said “China's efforts to enhance... military capabilities is mainly targeted at separatist forces ... who have attempted to split Taiwan away from China.”
Labels: bilateral ties, China, Robert Gates, U.S., U.S. Defence Secretary
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Gates silent on CIA's role in Libya
From The Hindu
The United States had no intention to send its ground forces into Libya; however, it remained noncommittal about the extent of involvement of CIA in Libyan operations, it was revealed to Congress this week.
Testifying before the House of Representatives Armed Services Committee, U.S. Defence Secretary Robert Gates said that as long as he was on the job there would not be any plan for U.S. soldiers to enter Libya.
However Mr. Gates refused to spell out details of the CIA's activities, following reports on Thursday that the U.S. spy agency was already on Libyan soil.
Limited role
Reiterating the oft-stated U.S. claim that involvement would be “limited,” he added that the new mission in Libya, codenamed “Operation Unified Protector,” was under to an integrated NATO command and the U.S. military would only provide “the capabilities that others cannot provide either in kind or in scale,” including electronic warfare, aerial refuelling, lift, search and rescue, and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance support.
Mr. Gates in his Congressional testimony said, “Accordingly, we will, in coming days, significantly ramp down our commitment of other military capabilities and resources,”.
He added that deposing the Qadhafi regime would likely be achieved “over time through political and economic measures and by his own people.”
Earlier this week reports, quoting unnamed government officials, surfaced in U.S. media “small groups of C.I.A. operatives have been working in Libya for several weeks as part of a shadow force of Westerners that the Obama administration hopes can help bleed Colonel Qadhafi's military.”
The United States had no intention to send its ground forces into Libya; however, it remained noncommittal about the extent of involvement of CIA in Libyan operations, it was revealed to Congress this week.
Testifying before the House of Representatives Armed Services Committee, U.S. Defence Secretary Robert Gates said that as long as he was on the job there would not be any plan for U.S. soldiers to enter Libya.
However Mr. Gates refused to spell out details of the CIA's activities, following reports on Thursday that the U.S. spy agency was already on Libyan soil.
Limited role
Reiterating the oft-stated U.S. claim that involvement would be “limited,” he added that the new mission in Libya, codenamed “Operation Unified Protector,” was under to an integrated NATO command and the U.S. military would only provide “the capabilities that others cannot provide either in kind or in scale,” including electronic warfare, aerial refuelling, lift, search and rescue, and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance support.
Mr. Gates in his Congressional testimony said, “Accordingly, we will, in coming days, significantly ramp down our commitment of other military capabilities and resources,”.
He added that deposing the Qadhafi regime would likely be achieved “over time through political and economic measures and by his own people.”
Earlier this week reports, quoting unnamed government officials, surfaced in U.S. media “small groups of C.I.A. operatives have been working in Libya for several weeks as part of a shadow force of Westerners that the Obama administration hopes can help bleed Colonel Qadhafi's military.”
Labels: Robert Gates, U.S. role in Libya
U.S. uncertain about duration of Libyan involvement
In media interviews over the weekend, United States Defence Secretary Robert Gates and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton have hinted at uncertainty over the duration of Western nations’ involvement in the Libyan conflict.
When asked in an interview with CBS whether a lengthy military involvement implied the U.S. was again embarking on a regime-change project, Ms. Clinton said: “If we have learned anything over the past number of years, regime change is very complicated and can be very expensive and can take a long time. And so I think the key here was establishing a military mission that was achievable... on a limited period of time and it could be sustained.”
Yet, in the same interview, in response to a question on Pentagon reports that the no-fly zone imposed over Libyan airspace under a United Nations resolution would last three months or more, Mr. Gates said: “I don't think anybody has any idea.”
Ms. Clinton suggested there was also continuing uncertainty on whether the Western alliance would arm the rebels fighting Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi’s forces. Ms. Clinton said there had been no such decision, however, the U.S. was “in contact with the rebels” and she had met with one of the leaders.
However, Ms. Clinton added that should it be deemed necessary to arm the rebels, there was legal basis to do so under the U.N. mandate, because, “There is an arms embargo against the Qadhafi regime that was established in ... Resolution 1970, which applied to the entire country. In the follow-on resolution, 1973, there is an exception if countries or organisations were to choose to use that.”
Labels: Hillary Clinton, Libya, Libya unrest, Robert Gates
Gates struggles to convince Russia on civilian casualties
Revealing the persistence of cracks in the Western alliance that is bombing targets in Libya, United States Defence Secretary Robert Gates, currently in Moscow, struggled to convince his Russian interlocutors that military operations in Libya were not resulting in civilian casualties.
At a joint press conference with Mr. Gates and Defence Minister Anatoliy Serdyukov, Mr. Serdyukov said that recent developments in Libya demonstrated that the imposition and enforcement of the no-fly-zone, under a United Nations resolution, was experiencing real difficulties which resulted in “destroying civilian facilities and killing civilians”.
He added that this should not have been allowed to happen, and Russia had “informed our U.S. counterparts of our opposition, and we urge all belligerent parties to do their best to stop the violence, and we believe that an immediate ceasefire and a dialogue between the belligerent parties is the surest way to reliable security of civilians.”
Responding to this remark Mr. Gates said, “The coalition is going through great lengths to avoid civilian casualties and most of the targets are air defence targets isolated from populated areas... The significant military fighting that has been going on should recede in the next few days.”
Further Mr. Gates later said to reporters, “I am a little curious, frankly, about the tone that has been taken. It is perfectly evident that the vast majority, if not nearly all, civilian casualties have been inflicted by [Libyan leader Muammar] Qadhafi.”
Arguing that most of the Western alliance’s targets were in isolated non-populated areas, including air defence sites he struck back at the comments by Mr. Serdyukov saying, “It is almost as though some people here are taking at face value Qadhafi‘s claims about the number of civilian casualties, which as far as I am concerned, are just outright lies.”
Earlier reports noted that the Russian Parliament had called for an immediate halt to foreign armed strikes in Libya and warned the Western states that their “indiscriminate” use of force could spur more countries to acquire nuclear arms.
While the U.S., United Kingdom and France have led the Western alliance’s military operations in Libya, entailing more than four days of aerial bombing to date, other United Nations Security Council members including India, China, Russia and Germany abstained from the vote passing the resolution that authorised the imposition of a no-fly zone over Libya.
The U.S. has also hinted that its involvement in the operations might wind down over time yielding leadership to European nations, with President Barack Obama saying at a press conference in El Salvador earlier this week, “I have absolutely no doubt that we will be able to transfer control of this operation to an international coalition. I had discussions with Prime Minister Cameron and President Sarkozy [and] NATO is meeting today as we speak to work out some of the mechanisms for command and control.”
He further noted that there was already a “significant reduction in the number of U.S. planes that are involved in operations over Libya, because, as I said initially, our job was to take our unique capabilities and create a space to shape the environment so that the operation of a no-fly zone could operate effectively, and to make sure that our immediate humanitarian goals could be met.”
According to reports, the International Energy Agency says that more than 70 per cent of Libya's oil is exported to European nations, many of which “have spent years investing in Libya's oil industry”. In particular, it was noted that by the end of October 2010, the number of French companies in Libya had nearly doubled from 2008 and most of them were in the energy sector.
Labels: Libya, Libyan unrest, Muhammar Qadhafi, Robert Gates
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Florida pastor calls off plan
From The Hindu
Terry Jones, the pastor of a 30-member church in Gainesville, Florida, has called off his controversial plans to desecrate a symbol of the Islamic religion on the ninth anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks, at least for the moment.
After receiving a call from United States Secretary of Defence Robert Gates on Thursday afternoon, urging Mr. Jones not to attack Muslim religious sentiments on Saturday, the pastor agreed to suspend his plans.
According to reports, Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell said that in his call to the pastor, “The Secretary expressed his grave concern that going forward would put the lives of our forces at risk, especially in Iraq and Afghanistan, and urged him not to proceed with it. That was the extent of it.”
Shortly after the call the pastor, along with Imam Muhammad Musry of the Islamic Society of Central Florida, issued a press statement saying that he had been in touch with Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf about moving the location of the so called “Ground Zero mosque” and was willing to suspend his plans.
Mr. Jones said, “I will be flying up there on Saturday to meet with the Imam [of] the Ground Zero mosque. He has agreed to move the location. That of course cannot happen overnight... The American people do not want the mosque there and of course Muslims do not want us to [attack their religion].” He said that he had therefore “agreed to cancel our event on Saturday”.
However after Mr. Jones’ press conference, Imam Feisal was reported to have released a statement saying, “I am glad that Pastor Jones has decided not to [proceed]. However, I have not spoken to Pastor Jones or Imam Musry. I am surprised by their announcement.”
Mr. Jones’ actions had earlier elicited condemnations across the board from the U.S. government, with President Barack Obama saying that Mr. Jones’ plans to attack the religion would be a “recruitment bonanza for al-Qaeda”.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, General David Petraeus had also sharply criticised Mr. Jones’ plans, with General Petraeus expressing concern that they would endanger U.S. troops and the U.S.’ overall military effort.
Labels: Florida pastor, Quran burning controversy, Reverend Terry Jones, Robert Gates
Monday, August 02, 2010
MIT grads implicated in WikiLeaks probe
From The Hindu
The saga of WikiLeaks continued over the weekend with revelations that a military officer suspected of supplying the whistleblower website with confidential documents had been aided by several graduates of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
The Boston Globe newspaper reported that a 23-year-old recent MIT graduate, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the Defence Department investigators had interviewed him to determine whether he and others in the local computer hacker community had helped army intelligence analyst Bradley Manning, a key suspect in the leaks according to Pentagon officials.
Other media reports noted that Adrian Lamo, a California-based computer hacker responsible for turning in Mr. Bradley to the authorities in May, had claimed that he had “firsthand knowledge that someone helped Manning set up encryption software to send classified information to WikiLeaks.”
Mr. Lamo, said to be cooperating with the investigation, reportedly refused to name the person. However he added that Mr. Manning’s associate was part of a group in Boston that had worked with WikiLeaks. The Associated Press quoted Mr. Lamo as saying that the software had enabled Mr. Manning to send classified data in small bits so that it would seem innocuous: “It wouldn’t look too much different from your average guy doing his banking on line.”
Meanwhile the MIT graduate who spoke to the Boston Globe said that he categorically denied that he had any role in helping Mr. Manning leak the documents, saying, “I did not help him or know about it before it happened.”
Legal, moral areas of culpability
In related developments, Defence Secretary Robert Gates turned up the heat on WikiLeaks saying in an interview over the weekend that that he was “mortified, appalled... and angry”. He further warned that there were two areas of culpability — legal and moral. He added that while legal culpability was “up to the Justice Department and others [and] not my arena” on moral culpability, “the verdict is guilty on WikiLeaks”.
In discussing the impact of the leaks on the U.S.’ Afghanistan strategy, Secretary Gates said, “We are not leaving Afghanistan in July 2011.” Instead, he said that was when U.S. forces hoped to begin a transition process and a thinning of U.S. army ranks.
On timelines, Mr. Gates sought to deflect criticism that the announced drawdown might strengthen the hand of the Taliban later in 2011. He said, “The pace will depend on the conditions on the ground... The President has been very clear about that. And if the Taliban are waiting for the 19th month, I welcome that, because we will be there in the 19th month, and we will be there with a lot of troops.”
Labels: Julian Assange, MIT grads, Robert Gates, Wikileaks
Friday, July 30, 2010
FBI to help probe Wikileaks source
From The Hindu
In what could mark the start of an accelerating backlash from the administration, the release of sensitive military documents by the WikiLeaks whistleblower website was attacked by senior Department of Defence officials.
The criticism by top DoD staff, such as Defence Secretary Robert Gates and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mike Mullen, was also accompanied by an announcement that the military had asked the Federal Bureau of Investigation to help Pentagon authorities investigate the sources of the leak of the classified documents.
Describing the release as a “breach of national security”, Mr. Gates said the use of the FBI would ensure the investigation could go wherever it needed to go.
Regarding the founder of WikiLeaks, Julian Assange, Admiral Mullen said, “Mr. Assange can say whatever he likes about the greater good he thinks he and his source are doing, but the truth is they might already have on their hands the blood of some young soldier or that of an Afghan family.”
Mr. Gates however expressed the opposite view on the importance of the documents, “These documents represent a mountain of raw data and individual impressions, most several years old, devoid of context or analysis... They do not represent official positions or policy.” He further emphasised that in his view, the documents’ revelations did not fundamentally call into question the efficacy of the allied strategy in Afghanistan and its prospects for success.
However, Secretary Gates noted that the 90,000-plus documents released by WikiLeaks still had battlefield consequences for United States, Afghan troops and civilians, and also may damage U.S. relationships in Central Asia and the Middle East.
In particular, Mr. Gates expressed concern that they might damage the U.S.’ relationships with Afghanistan and Pakistan. “Both nations remember that the U.S. walked away from the region in 1989, and U.S. military and civilian leaders have been trying hard since 2001 to repair those relationships and close the trust deficit,” he said.
Admiral Mullen corroborated this sentiment, noting, “In addition to making sure we understand the tactical risks from these leaks, I think it is incumbent upon us not to let the good relationships we have established and the trust we have worked so hard to build throughout the region also become a casualty.”
Labels: Afghan war, NATO, Robert Gates, Taliban, Wikileaks
Saturday, April 10, 2010
U.S. disavows nuclear attacks against NPT-compliant states
From The Hindu
The United States administration today pledged to not use nuclear weapons against any non-nuclear state that complied with the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), as per the latest Nuclear Posture Review (NPR).
Announcing some of the key results of the “first unclassified NPR in its totality” at the Pentagon, Secretary of Defence, Robert Gates said,” If a non-nuclear state is in compliance with the NPT and its obligations, the U.S. pledges not to use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against it.”
He added that if any state eligible for such an assurance were to use chemical or biological weapons against the U.S., its allies or partners, it would face the prospect of a “devastating conventional military response.”
Asserting that this implied a “significant change” in the U.S.’s nuclear posture Mr. Gates however said that given the catastrophic potential of biological weapons and the rapid pace of biotechnology development, the U.S. still “reserves the right to make any adjustment to this policy that may be warranted by the evolution and proliferation of biological weapons.”
He underscored the point that the review also placed the evolution of nuclear terrorism and proliferation at the top of the nuclear policy agenda – this was essential given “Al Qaeda’s continued quest for nuclear weapons, Iran’s ongoing nuclear efforts and North Korea’s proliferation,” Mr. Gates explained.
In terms of other changes from earlier nuclear policy, the NPR results announced today determined that the U.S. would not develop new nuclear warheads. “Programmes to extend the lives of warheads will use only nuclear components based on previously tested designs and will not support new military missions or provide for new military capabilities,” Mr. Gates said in this context.
Speaking on the release of the review, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that the NPR represented a “milestone in the transformation of our nuclear forces and the way in which we approach nuclear issues.” Touching upon upcoming efforts in the area of nuclear security she said that this Thursday President Obama would return to Prague to sign historic new START treaty with Russia; and next week he would will host more than 40 heads of state and governments to tackle the threat of nuclear terrorism. She said that this NPR provided the strategic basis for such efforts and demonstrated the U.S. commitment to making progress towards disarmament under the nuclear NPT.
She emphasised that by stating, for the first time, that the U.S. would not use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear weapons states that were party to the NPT and in compliance with their non-proliferation obligations the U.S. would help “reinvigorate the global non-proliferation regime, especially as we approach the NPT review conference next month.”
Mr. Gates stressed that there were a number of areas of continuity prescribed by the NPR, including the intention of the U.S. to hold accountable “any state, terrorist group or other non-state actor that supports or enables terrorist efforts to obtain or use weapons of mass destruction, whether by facilitating, financing or providing expertise or safe havens for such efforts.”
It would also be necessary for the U.S. to make “much needed investments to rebuild our ageing nuclear infrastructure, both facilities and personnel,” Mr. Gates said, adding that he had asked for nearly $5 billion to be transferred from the Department of Defence to the Department of Energy over the next several years, to improve U.S. nuclear infrastructure.
The U.S. would additionally continue to maintain the nuclear triad of Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles, nuclear-capable aircraft and ballistic missile submarines. Further it would continue to develop and improve non-nuclear capabilities, including regional missile defences, “to strengthen deterrence and reduce the role of nuclear weapons in our overall defence posture,” Mr. Gates said. Finally the U.S. would still abide by its pledge not to conduct nuclear testing and press for ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty.
The United States administration today pledged to not use nuclear weapons against any non-nuclear state that complied with the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), as per the latest Nuclear Posture Review (NPR).
Announcing some of the key results of the “first unclassified NPR in its totality” at the Pentagon, Secretary of Defence, Robert Gates said,” If a non-nuclear state is in compliance with the NPT and its obligations, the U.S. pledges not to use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against it.”
He added that if any state eligible for such an assurance were to use chemical or biological weapons against the U.S., its allies or partners, it would face the prospect of a “devastating conventional military response.”
Asserting that this implied a “significant change” in the U.S.’s nuclear posture Mr. Gates however said that given the catastrophic potential of biological weapons and the rapid pace of biotechnology development, the U.S. still “reserves the right to make any adjustment to this policy that may be warranted by the evolution and proliferation of biological weapons.”
He underscored the point that the review also placed the evolution of nuclear terrorism and proliferation at the top of the nuclear policy agenda – this was essential given “Al Qaeda’s continued quest for nuclear weapons, Iran’s ongoing nuclear efforts and North Korea’s proliferation,” Mr. Gates explained.
In terms of other changes from earlier nuclear policy, the NPR results announced today determined that the U.S. would not develop new nuclear warheads. “Programmes to extend the lives of warheads will use only nuclear components based on previously tested designs and will not support new military missions or provide for new military capabilities,” Mr. Gates said in this context.
Speaking on the release of the review, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that the NPR represented a “milestone in the transformation of our nuclear forces and the way in which we approach nuclear issues.” Touching upon upcoming efforts in the area of nuclear security she said that this Thursday President Obama would return to Prague to sign historic new START treaty with Russia; and next week he would will host more than 40 heads of state and governments to tackle the threat of nuclear terrorism. She said that this NPR provided the strategic basis for such efforts and demonstrated the U.S. commitment to making progress towards disarmament under the nuclear NPT.
She emphasised that by stating, for the first time, that the U.S. would not use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear weapons states that were party to the NPT and in compliance with their non-proliferation obligations the U.S. would help “reinvigorate the global non-proliferation regime, especially as we approach the NPT review conference next month.”
Mr. Gates stressed that there were a number of areas of continuity prescribed by the NPR, including the intention of the U.S. to hold accountable “any state, terrorist group or other non-state actor that supports or enables terrorist efforts to obtain or use weapons of mass destruction, whether by facilitating, financing or providing expertise or safe havens for such efforts.”
It would also be necessary for the U.S. to make “much needed investments to rebuild our ageing nuclear infrastructure, both facilities and personnel,” Mr. Gates said, adding that he had asked for nearly $5 billion to be transferred from the Department of Defence to the Department of Energy over the next several years, to improve U.S. nuclear infrastructure.
The U.S. would additionally continue to maintain the nuclear triad of Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles, nuclear-capable aircraft and ballistic missile submarines. Further it would continue to develop and improve non-nuclear capabilities, including regional missile defences, “to strengthen deterrence and reduce the role of nuclear weapons in our overall defence posture,” Mr. Gates said. Finally the U.S. would still abide by its pledge not to conduct nuclear testing and press for ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty.
Labels: NPR, NPT, nuclear issues, Robert Gates, submarines
Subscribe to Comments [Atom]
