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Article: Most favored nation: the United States carries a big stick on proliferation, but talks softly regarding Israel. (Special Section: Nonproliferation) (Cover Story)
- Article from:
- Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
- Article date:
- January 1, 1995
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1995 Educational Foundation for Nuclear Science, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Every American president since Harry S. Truman has been against the proliferation of nuclear weapons. Publicly, at least. Behind closed doors, the opposition has been less clear cut, more nuanced.
The United States doesn't want North Korea to have nuclear weapons, and it certainly doesn't want Iraq or Iran to get them. The U.S. stance toward India and Pakistan--"threshold states"--has been alternately tough and conciliatory. The United States and other industrialized nations have developed an arsenal of export controls and sanctions to discourage proliferation, as well as a rhetoric replete with references to "rogue" nations and "outlaw" regimes.
And yet, not ...