US to nuke Russia + 6 other countries!!!?

[Ronbo]

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/...me%2Dheadlines
Russian, U.S. officials to cut nukes
The Associated Press

March 13, 2002, 1:58 PM EST

WASHINGTON -- Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said Wednesday it is likely that the United States and Russia will come up with some type of legally binding document outlining their mutual pledge to cut nuclear weapons by two-thirds.

President Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin "have agreed that they would like to have something that would go beyond their two presidencies," Rumsfeld said at a news conference after two days of meetings with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov.

Referring to Ivanov's call for a legally binding document outlining that pledge, the American defense secretary said: "Some sort of a document of that type is certainly a likelihood."

Ivanov said he would like to see good progress toward such a document so that it could be signed at a May summit by Putin and Bush in Russia.

"We believe there should be a legally binding document which would be comprehensive and understandable for the whole world, and which would also reflect the transparency we need to achieve between the two countries," Ivanov said.

Rumsfeld also sought to reassure Russian officials and the world that the United States is not eyeing Russia as a potential target of nuclear weapons.

The disclosure last weekend of an internal U.S. nuclear review naming Russia and six other countries as potential threats alarmed the Kremlin and leaders of other countries.

"Without getting into the classified details, I can say that the review says nothing about targeting any country with nuclear weapons," Rumsfeld said. "The United States targets no country on a day-to-day basis."

Echoing the comments of other Bush administration officials since news reports of the document appeared, Rumsfeld said the Nuclear Posture Review was not a planning document for possible U.S. action, but merely "sets out prudent requirements for deterrence in the 21st century."

Russian officials had been briefed on the document in January, Rumsfeld said.

The document does, however, note that Russia has formidable nuclear weapons and "prudently takes this into account," Rumsfeld said.

But the relationship between the United States and Russia has undergone such a fundamental improvement that the two countries no longer view each other as adversaries, Rumsfeld said.


"The United States seeks a cooperative relationship with Russia, which moves away from the mutually assured destruction (policy) of the past," Rumsfeld said.

On Tuesday, Ivanov had told reporters "it's quite natural" that he would want to discuss the review with the people who prepared it. He told reporters that Rumsfeld's public statements about the report accurately reflect its contents.

"Secretary Rumsfeld briefed you on the true situation, and I don't have anything to add here," Ivanov told reporters.

Secretary of State Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice, the president's national security assistant, also have assured Russia it is not being targeted.
Copyright 2002 Associated Press

[Ronbo]

...Not to panic!

[Relict]

Originally posted by Ronbo
...Not to panic!

I don't beleive what they[Rice,and Rumsfeld] say they're trying to downplay the issue

[Edited by Relict on 13th March 2002 at 23:45]