In September there was a lot of blathering about how wonderful it was that a unanimous vote of the Security Council showed that a consensus against nuclear weapons was developing... The 'UNSC Resolution 1887' blog entry asked how it was possible to square 1887's Section 9 (which "Recalls the statements by each of the five nuclear-weapon States, noted by resolution 984 (1995), in which they give security assurances against the use of nuclear weapons to non-nuclear-weapon State Parties to the NPT, and affirms that such security assurances strengthen the nuclear non-proliferation regime") with the U.S.'s oft repeated insistence on "keeping everything on the table" in dealing with Iran and other regimes.
Now a top Russian defense official has said that Russia reserves the right to conduct pre-emptive nuclear strikes to safeguard the country... Quotes include: "... a variety of possibilities for using nuclear force, depending on the situation and the intentions of the possible opponent. In situations critical to national security, options including a preventative nuclear strike on the aggressor are not excluded." He went on to say that nukes could be used "to repel an aggression with the use of conventional weapons not only in a large-scale but also in a regional and even local war..."
None of this actually represents a change in doctrine, merely a continuation of the status quo whereby the nuclear-haves spout platitudes, while arrogating to themselves the right to threaten other countries with these weapons...
Now a top Russian defense official has said that Russia reserves the right to conduct pre-emptive nuclear strikes to safeguard the country... Quotes include: "... a variety of possibilities for using nuclear force, depending on the situation and the intentions of the possible opponent. In situations critical to national security, options including a preventative nuclear strike on the aggressor are not excluded." He went on to say that nukes could be used "to repel an aggression with the use of conventional weapons not only in a large-scale but also in a regional and even local war..."
None of this actually represents a change in doctrine, merely a continuation of the status quo whereby the nuclear-haves spout platitudes, while arrogating to themselves the right to threaten other countries with these weapons...
