THERE GOES THE NEIGHBORHOOD

More than 470 physicists, including seven Nobel laureates, have signed a petition to oppose a new U.S. Defense Department proposal that allows the United States to use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear states. The signers object to the new policy because it blurs the sharp line between nuclear weapons and conventional, chemical and biological weapons.

The petition is signed by two past presidents of the American Physical Society, the premier professional organization for U.S. physicists—George Trilling of UC Berkeley and Jerome Friedman of MIT. Friedman, who is also a Nobel laureate, was joined on the petition by six other Nobel Prizewinners in physics—Philip Anderson of Princeton University, Anthony Leggett of the University of Illinois, Douglas Osheroff of Stanford University, Daniel Tsui of Princeton University, Steven Weinberg of the University of Texas and Frank Wilczek of MIT.

Other prominent physicists on the petition include Fields Medal winner Edward Witten of the Institute for Advanced Study, Wolf Prize laureates Michael Fisher of the University of Maryland and Daniel Kleppner of MIT, and Leo Kadanoff of the University of Chicago, a recipient of the National Medal of Science and president-elect of the American Physical Society.

Two initiators on Tuesday criticized the emerging US policy that will destroy the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

"The new policy allows the US to use nuclear weapons against states that do not have nuclear weapons and for a host of new reasons, including rapid termination of a conflict on US terms or to ensure success of the US forces," said Jorge Hirsch, physics professor at the University of California, San Diego, who started this petition.

"The US use of nuclear weapons against non-nuclear states will destroy the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and give strong incentive for other countries to develop and use nuclear weapons, thus making nuclear war more likely, " said professor Kim Griest, another initiator of the petition. "This new US policy dramatically increases the risk of nuclear proliferation and, ultimately, the risk that regional conflicts will explode into all-out nuclear war, with the potential to destroy our civilization," he noted.

The two physicists began their petition last month following reports in The New York Times and Washington Post that the US government was in the final process of adopting a new policy that would permit the use of nuclear weapons against a non-nuclear adversary under certain circumstances.

The new nuclear strike doctrine, written by the Pentagon's Joint Chiefs staff but not yet finally approved by Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, would update rules and procedures governing use of nuclear weapons to reflect a preemption strategy first announced by the Bush White House in December 2002.

A "summary of changes" included in the draft titled "Doctrine for Joint Nuclear Operations" in fact "revises the discussion of nuclear weapons use across the range of military operations."

The new “Doctrine” would permit the use of nuclear weapons against an adversary for the following reasons:

* For rapid and favorable war termination on U.S. terms.

* To ensure success of U.S. and multinational operations.

* To demonstrate U.S. intent and capability to use nuclear weapons to deter adversary use of weapons of mass destruction.

* Against an adversary intending to use weapons of mass destruction against US, multinational, or alliance forces.

The policy thus indicates that the U.S. envisions a role for nuclear weapons that goes beyond simple deterrence and suggests their use to destroy military targets.

The draft document asserts that although the international community may condemn the state that initiates nuclear warfare, neither customary nor conventional international law prohibits employing nuclear weapons. Sources: People’s Daily (China), University of California at San Diego, Integrative Center for Homeland Security (Texas A and M), Science Daily, Washington Post