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June 2002:
suggested link India, Pakistan and the Bomb
A timely feature article from the
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From Scientific
American
http://www.sciam.com/
India,
Pakistan and the Bomb
by M. V. RAMANA and A. H.
NAYYAR
The Indian subcontinent is the most likely
place in the world for a nuclear war
"THROUGH THE STREETS OF KARACHI, a mock missile is paraded by Pasban,
a youth wing of Pakistan's main fundamentalist party, Jamaat-e-Islami. The
parade took
place in February 1999 on a day of solidarity with Kashmiris in
India-administered Kashmir.
Such enthusiasm for nuclear weapons is widespread, though not universal,
in both India
and Pakistan.
As the U.S. mobilized its armed forces in the aftermath of the terrorist
attacks of September
11, the world's attention focused on Pakistan, so crucial to military operations
in Afghanistan.
When Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf pledged total support for a U.S.-led
multinational
force on September 14, many people's first thought was: What about Pakistan's
nuclear
weapons? Could they fall into the hands of extremists? In an address to his
nation, Musharraf
proclaimed that the "safety of nuclear missiles" was one of his priorities.
The Bush administration
began to consider providing Pakistan with perimeter security and other assistance
to guard its
nuclear facilities." [...]
Critical Mass
"Making Nuclear Weapons Material Deployment increases the risk
that nuclear
weapons will be used in a crisis through accident or miscalculation. With
missile flight
times of three to five minutes between the two countries, early-warning systems
are
useless." [...]
Other related links . . .
Pakistan
Shifts Troops From Border With Afghanistan
nytimes.com/ [V.30.2002]
[...] "Pakistan's ambassador to the United Nations, Munir Akram, repeated
his country's long-stated position that it would not sign a no-first-use
policy on nuclear arms. India has one. [...]
And, for historical perspective . . .
[going back in time to
the Cuban
Missile Crisis in October of 1962, the closest the world has
ever come to all-out nuclear war]
Radio and Television Report to the American People
on the Soviet Arms Buildup in Cuba
http://www.jfklibrary.org/
President John F. Kennedy
The White House
October 22, 1962
View the trailer to the recent film based on these
historic events, at:
13 Days (requires RealAudio. To download
a free player, go to http://www.real.com/)
And for a remarkable commentary on the film, view a 10 minute
clip of the one the actual key players at the time, the former
Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara, go to:
Robert McNamara on Cuba, Nuclear Weapons and Fallibility
http://www.ceip,org/
"The Carnegie Endowment hosted the premiere of the movie "Thirteen Days" in Russia,
bringing together some of the principals involved in the Cuban Missile Crisis to view the
film and engage in a discussion of the historic event. The following are excerpted remarks
by Robert McNamara, President Kennedy's Secretary of Defense."
McNamara's commentary (requires RealAudio. To download
a free player, go to http://www.real.com/)