Taming the Hydra. WMD: The Threat and the Solution

In: Dissent: a journal devoted to radical ideas and the values of socialism and democracy, Band 52, Heft 4, S. 62-68

Abstract

Even though international forces failed to uncover weapons of mass destruction in Iraq during the Second Gulf War, it is asserted that weapons of mass destruction remain a real & dangerous threat to many countries' national security. Rather than establish a comprehensive approach to dealing with the threats posed by weapons of mass destruction, it is suggested that different approaches to different actors be developed to reduce their future use against the US. Whereas the establishment of confidence-building measures is recommended to diminish mid-ranking states development & deployment of weapons of mass destruction, it is asserted that the reduction of US military innovation combined with the adoption of new approaches to regional & international security could deter hostile countries from pursuing weapons of mass destruction. Rather than utilize emotional & religious rhetoric to characterize terrorists, it is stressed that relations with Islamic nations must be normalized & that the policy of winning the war against international terrorism be replaced with one that acknowledges differences between Western & Islamic countries. It is concluded that the George W. Bush administrations unilateral approach to reducing weapons of mass destruction is creating, not reducing, future threats to US security. J. W. Parker