Let Us Understand Our Government: Obama Backs First-Strike Nuclear War as U.S. Policy

By Francis A. Boyle

I have now had the chance to read President Obama’s Report on Nuclear Employment Strategy of the United States, that just came out on Friday, June 21, 2013.  The critical passage can be found on page 5:

“The 2010 Nuclear Posture Review established the Administration’s goal to set conditions that would allow the United States to safely adopt a policy of making deterrence of nuclear attack the sole purpose of U.S. nuclear weapons.  Although we cannot  adopt such a policy today, the new guidance re-iterates the intention to work towards that goal over time.”

Nuclear Deterrence Not Administration Policy

In other words, “nuclear deterrence” is not now and has not been the policy of the Obama administration going back to and including  their 2010 Nuclear Posture Review as well.   Since “nuclear deterrence” is not now and has never been the Obama administration’s nuclear weapons policy from the get-go, then by default this means that offensive first-strike strategic nuclear war fighting is now and has always been the Obama administration’s nuclear weapons policy.  This policy will also be pursued and augmented by means of  “integrated non-nuclear strike options.” Id.

Therefore, the entire 2013 NPR and Obama’s recent nuclear arms “reduction”  proposals must be understood within this context of the United States pursuing an offensive, strategic first-strike  nuclear war-fighting capability as augmented by non-nuclear strike forces:

“After a comprehensive review of our nuclear forces, the President has determined that we can ensure the security of the United States and our Allies and partners and maintain a strong and credible strategic deterrent while safely pursuing a one-third reduction in deployed nuclear  weapons from the level established  in the New START Treaty.” Id. at 6.

And we know now for sure that all the Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD)  systems that Obama is currently in the process of deploying in Europe, Asia, and the United States, on land, at sea and perhaps in Outer Space are designed to provide the United States with a  strategic, offensive, first strike nuclear war fighting capability against Russia, China, Iran, North Korea and Syria for starters, the latter three because the United States has taken the position that they are not in compliance with their obligations under the Nuclear  Non-Proliferation Treaty:  “…the United States has relied increasingly on non-nuclear elements to strengthen regional security architectures, including a forward U.S. conventional  presence and effective theater ballistic missile defenses…” Id. at 9.

So the United States government is currently preparing to launch, wage and win an offensive,  first-strike strategic nuclear war against Russia, China, Iran, North Korea and Syria.  All the rest is just palaver, including by our Dissembler-in-Chief, an “honors”  graduate of Harvard Law School.Φ

Francis A Boyle is the author of The Criminality of  Nuclear Deterrence (Clarity Press: 2002).