----- Original Message ----- From: Rick Rozoff <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Thursday, July 13, 2000 8:05 AM Subject: [STOPNATO] U.S. A Threat To World Peace STOP NATO: NO PASARAN! - HTTP://WWW.STOPNATO.COM http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/history/2000/07/d4-1arms.713.html China Daily July 13, 2000 Editorial US a threat to world peace The United States of America should be blamed for the escalating global arms race, according to an article in the overseas edition of People's Daily, which says the country is going against the will of the world and seeking military supremacy. The article said the end of the Cold War brought hope and concrete advancement in global disarmament and arms control. However, it went on to say that an adverse trend has occurred in recent years, which has thwarted and even reversed the disarmament process - and could ultimately threaten world peace. In 1996, the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) was ratified in the United Nations General Assembly, something which signified a major breakthrough in worldwide disarmament and nuclear non-proliferation. But NATO's eastward expansion and the US-led NATO air strikes against Yugoslavia last year have led to a step backwards in disarmament, and damaged the relationship between Russia and the United States. Furthermore, the US has worried other countries are developing their own strategic weapons to deal with potential military threats in the future. To safeguard its strategic interests in East Asia, the United States has strengthened its alliance with Japan, which constitutes a threat to regional stability. And the US bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade brought the Sino-US disarmament talks to a standstill. The two countries only renewed their talks last week. What is most devastating to global disarmament and arms control is the US' attempt to deploy its National Missile Defence (NMD) system and Theatre Missile Defence (TMD) system. It has also tried to amend the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty and refused to sign the CTBT. The article said that the frustration the global disarmament and arms control efforts have suffered obviously comes from the US attempt to be dominant. In the past decade, sustained economic prosperity has secured the US' position as the most powerful country in the world. Following this economic boom and the ensuing military dominance, its ambition to grab global hegemony has grown. To this end, the United States has greatly increased its military expenditure. Last year, the figure stood at US$276.2 billion, increasing to US$288.8 billion this year. That is 2.5 times the total spending of Russia, Britain, France, Germany, Japan and China. On top of that, the United States is attempting to develop high-tech weapons to compete for the control of the outer space. Its irresponsible actions have jeopardized its relations with other countries, including its allies, and fuelled a new arms race, the article said. The US' dominance has incurred opposition in other parts of the world. To ensure its security, the United States has invested heavily in deploying missile defence systems, which are potential threats to the security of other countries. It claimed to have invented the systems to prevent possible attacks from the so-called "rogue countries." But in reality, it aims to disable the offensive capabilities of its major strategic rivals, namely, Russia and China, and establish its superiority in the world. The United States' attitude towards international disarmament and arms control betrays its true mentality - to make use of its military advantage to serve its own interests, the article said. The US' rejection of CTBT and its attempt to amend the ABM Treaty have clearly revealed how it only considers its own strategic interests and disregards the overall security and stability of the globe. Such an attitude has seriously jeopardized the authority of international disarmament treaties. The article said it was fair to say that the US' actions are the major cause of international disarmament setbacks. And the country is responsible for spreading missile technologies around the world. It has been an active technology trader and has been working with other countries to develop the TMD system. That has inevitably resulted in the proliferation of missile technologies. History has repeatedly shown that "security" is only a relative concept; if a country wants to safeguard its security by working on its military strength, its rivals will certainly try to take countermeasures, and the world will be exposed to more serious threats. The only way to ensure security is all working together, and setting up a mechanism of mutual constraints to guarantee mutual security, the article said. If the United States goes on with its policy of wanting to be dominant, the world will be plunged into turmoil and the US itself will suffer from a global arms race, the article warned. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: 07/13/2000 Author: Copyright by China Daily __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get Yahoo! Mail Free email you can access from anywhere! http://mail.yahoo.com/ ______________________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Start Your Own FREE Email List at http://www.listbot.com/links/joinlb
