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Tuesday, October 23rd, 2018

‘This Is a Colossal Mistake’: Experts Sound Alarms After Trump Confirms Plans to Ditch Nuclear Arms Control Treaty With Russia

Author:     Jessica Corbett
Source:     Common Dreams
Publication Date:     Saturday, October 20, 2018
 Link: ‘This Is a Colossal Mistake’: Experts Sound Alarms After Trump Confirms Plans to Ditch Nuclear Arms Control Treaty With Russia
Stephan:   For most of the 1970s, I was in government in the DoD world, where war is a profession. And my own view, and that of many others in that geopolitical world was that we were one mistake away from nuclear war. And, indeed, although it is little known, nuclear war was in fact avoided thanks to the decision by one Soviet colonel  not to push the button. Even the popular media talked about it, and there were films like The Day after tomorrow, on earlier On the Beach. It got to a point during the Reagan administration where Reagan and Gorbachev got serious about arms control. It's hard to explain today how that felt to those of us who understood how great was the risk. Now those hard-won treaties are being discarded by Trump and Bolton like an old T-shirt. I can hardly believe I am writing this.

President Donald Trump on Saturday confirmed to reporters that he plans to ditch a Cold War-era nuclear arms control treaty with Russia.
Credit: Michael Tercha/Getty

Concerns are mounting after President Donald Trump confirmed on Saturday that he will withdraw from a Cold War-era nuclear arms control treaty with Russia following reports that National Security Adviser John Bolton had been pushing the plan behind closed doors despite warnings from experts that ditching the agreement “would be reckless and stupid.”

The Guardian had reported Friday that Bolton and an ally in the White House have been working to convince members of the administration to support the United States withdrawing from the 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces treaty (INF) on the grounds that Russia is violating it. Nuclear arms control experts and others rapidly responded with alarm. Many agreed that Russia’s alleged violation “merits a strong response” but noted a withdrawal could alienate European allies and raise the chances of armed conflict.

The president’s comments on Saturday spurred more alarm, with Daryl Kimball of the Arms Control Association calling the looming withdrawal “an epic mistake.”

Jeffrey […]

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