The Logic of Zero

Daalder and Lodal presented a thought provoking roadmap for the reduction and eventual elimination of nuclear weapons, worldwide. Recognizing that the only legitimate justification for possessing nuclear weapons is to prevent their use by others, Daalder and Lodal suggested the U.S. begin by reducing its arsenal to the minimum required for deterrence (1000 weapons), and, through active diplomacy, recruit other nations to the cause and establish a world system for verification. What’s missing is a call for a less belligerent American foreign policy.

For the U.S. to invade Iraq, a militarily weak non-nuclear nation, and threaten military force against Iran, while leaving the more brutal, but nuclear, North Korean regime alone sends a message to other nations that the way to avoid a U.S. invasion is to acquire nuclear weapons. In his article “The Latter-Day Sultan, Power and Politics in Iran,” Foreign Affairs, November/December 2008, Akbar Ganji discussed how, after the attacks of September 11, 2001, Tehran aided the U.S. in overthrowing the Taliban and forming a new government in Afghanistan, and proposed contemplating recognition of Israel and establishing a security plan for the Persian Gulf. “But the Bush administration, drunk on its quick military victory in Iraq, disregarded the offer. All sections of the Iranian regime, including Khatami and the reformists, interpreted the brushoff to mean that after Iraq, it was Iran’s turn to be invaded by the United States.” Is it any wonder that Iran refuses to stop its nuclear weapons program?