Pandora's Box: The Key to Close It.

摘要

Throughout the Cold War, U.S. policy makers viewed weapons of mass destruction (WMD) -- nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons -- in terms of a U.S.-Soviet confrontation. Specifically, nuclear weapons supported the strategy of 'containment' which, with the collapse of communism, may no longer be relevant. In the absence of a new comprehensive strategic threat, U.S. policy makers have failed to agree that the remaining direct threat to U.S. security is the increasing proliferation of WMD. The 'New World Order' that evolved in 1990 reflected a post-Cold War world that conceded that American power could lead a collective security arrangement to a more stable and secure international system. The United States and the world are on the verge of missing an opportunity to provide a coordinated political-military threat that would put all forms of WMD back into Pandora's box. The current national security strategy regarding the proliferation of WMD is contrary to declared national interests and to the U.S. goal of nonproliferation. This was particularly evident during the recent crisis concerning North Korea's nuclear weapons program. The purpose of this paper is to propose a new national security strategy concerning the proliferation of WMD.