Obama pledges to reduce nuclear arms
Updated on 06 April 2010
US President Barack Obama has kicked off his nuclear agenda this week by rolling out a strategy review which will limit the development of new atomic weapons and could herald further cuts in America's stockpile.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told journalists at a news conference: "We're enforcing our commitment to the NPT (Non-Proliferation Treaty) by stating clearly for the first time that the United States will not use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear weapon states that are party to the NPT and in compliance of their non-proliferation obligations."
The announcement came just two days before Obama signs a landmark arms control treaty with Russia in Prague. It could also have a hand in building up the momentum to next week's Washington nuclear security summit.
US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said: "This NPT determined that the United States will not develop new nuclear warheads. Programs to extend the life of warheads will only use nuclear components based on previously tested designs and will not support new military missions or provide for new military capability."
The revamped strategy is likely, however, to get criticism from conservatives who claim Obama's approach could compromise US national security and disappoint liberals who wanted the president to go further on arms control.
Under the new strategy, America for the first time forswears use of atomic weapons against non-nuclear countries. It contradicts the Bush-era threat of nuclear retaliation in the event of a biological or chemical attack.
The major condition for countries to avoid US nuclear response is if it is in compliance with the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. This loophole would rule out Iran and North Korea, meaning they would not be protected by the strategy.
Robert Gates commented: "If there is a message for Iran and North Korea here, it is that if you are going to play by the rules. If you are going to join the international community, then we will undertake certain obligations to you, and that's covered in the NPR. But if you are not going to play by the rules, if you're going to be a proliferator, then all options are on the table in terms of how we deal with you."
Seeking to set an example, the Obama administration said the United States would consider use of nuclear weapons only in "extreme circumstances" and committed to not developing any new nuclear warheads.
But it said that while reducing the role of nuclear weapons in national security, the United States would strengthen its conventional arsenal.
