International Relations in an Asymmetric Multilateral World

Gorbachev hits out at US over nuclear weapon arsenals, Hindustan Times 21 April 2005

"...The United States has come in for strong criticism from former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev for advising other countries against acquiring nuclear weapons while refusing to destroy its own arsenal. In his first public appearance at the UN since his historic "glasnost" address to the General Assembly in 1988, Gorbachev said the United States was "hypocritical" over nuclear armaments and not prepared to eliminate its own such arms.

"I think Russia is ready to cooperate. Now the question is, is the United States -- the only remaining superpower -- ready to do this? I think not myself," he said at a function at United Nations headquarters where he presented the Cranston Peace Award to CNN founder Ted Turner. "I think the United States is sick. It suffers from sickness, disease of being the victor and it needs to cure itself," he said. He advised Washington against suggesting that other countries have no need for nuclear weapons while it retains a large arsenal itself. "They say other people don't need it, but what kind of law is this that they are advocating? It's the law of the jungle," he said.

After receiving the award, instituted by the Global Security Institute, Turner suggested a ten-year plan to make the world free of nuclear weapons.

"Every country that has nuclear weapons should undertake to reduce the arsenal by ten per cent each year. That way the balance of power will remain the same and at the end of ten years, there would be no nuclear weapons left," Turner said.

Turner, who had established the UN Foundation with his $1 billion contribution to support United Nations goals, was honoured on Wednesday for his "outstanding work to end threats posed by nuclear weapons, his advocacy for sustainable development and his visionary leadership in communications".

Turner said it was "hypocrisy" for the US with 30,000 nuclear weapons to ask other countries not to have them.

"I don't think we have ever said anything about Israel's nuclear weapons and I don't see how we can say anything about anybody when we have got so many ourselves," he said.

Earlier, addressing a press conference, Turner said he was an "abolitionist." "I believe we ought to get rid of all (those weapons) as quickly as we can," he said, adding that while perhaps nothing could stop nations from "cheating" and building one or two weapons but they would not destroy the world. "After we get rid of all those weapons, the next step would be to preserve the environment," he said.

Gorbachev said he continued to stand by his position, and that of late US President Ronald Reagan, that no one could win a nuclear war."That being the case, weapons must be substantially reduced and eliminated. Military doctrines need to be reviewed and trust between all interested parties needed to be restored," he added.