Rebuttal of John Kerry’s blatant lies
In a recent (April 8th) screed for ForeignPolicy.com, written for the 3rd anniversary of the signing of the New START treaty, Secretary of State John Kerry advertises his blatant lies that he falsely claims are “facts” and admonishes the American people, policy analysts, and politicians to express their opinions (and in politicians’ case, make policy) based on “facts.” The problem is that there are NO facts in his pathetic screed.
To start with, Kerry falsely claims that New START has preserved peace, stability, and predictability between Russia and the US. That is false. The treaty’s Potemkin village verification regime is extremely weak (compared to that under the original START), with only 17 visits per side per year allowed, and is very prone to cheating.
As Ronald Reagan said, “We comply with arms control treaties. Those nations which don’t wish us well don’t.” Moscow has never complied with ANY arms control treaty it has signed.
New START cuts only America’s nuclear arsenal – not Russia’s. Moscow is actually allowed to increase its nuclear arsenal (and has done so, right up to New START limits; it is now grousing about growing its stockpile above these ceilings) and the treaty’s definition of a strategic bomber does not include Russia’s 171 Tu-22M aircraft, even though these are clearly intercontinental strategic bombers, just like Tu-160s.
Furthermore, New START doesn’t limit Russia’s huge tactical nuclear arsenal, which consists of as many as 4,000 nuclear warheads and their diverse delivery systems. Russia has an advantage of up to 10:1 over the US in tactical nukes. New START does nothing about this.
Nor has New START moderated Russia’s behavior or its aggressive nuclear exercises and simulated attacks on the US. Last year, Russia held the largest nuclear strategic exercises since the Cold War’s putative end, and conducted simulated nuclear bomber attacks on the US on two occassions: in June and on July 4th. In February 2013, Russia conducted two new such simulated attacks – against Guam and then against US missile defenses in Japan, with the very Tu-22M bombers New START exempts from its limitations.
No, Secretary Kerry, New START is not “working exactly as advertised”. It’s an utter failure of US diplomacy and a huge weakening of America’s defenses. Signing and ratifying it was an act of treason.
Kerry claims that New START’s ratification was a sign of bipartisan consensus on arms reduction. That is also a lie. In fact, the treaty just barely passed the Constitution’s required 2/3 treshold; had only 5 more Senators voted against it, it would’ve failed as it deserved to. Most of the 13 gullible Republicans who voted for it were retiring Senators heading out the door; others, like Tennessee’s Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker, were deceived by Barack Obama’s dishonest, and never fulfilled, promises of funding for America’s nuclear facilities modernization – funding that never materialized.
Kerry falsely claims that the biggest threat today is that of nuclear terrorism, not Russia or China’s nuclear arsenals. That is also patently false. Nuclear terrorism is a merely hypothetical threat that has failed to materialize; meanwhile, Russia and China have (and are growing and modernizing) large nuclear arsenals. (China reportedly has up to 3,000 nuclear warheads, not the mere 240-300 that American arms control advocacy groups falsely claim.) THESE are the biggest threats to US security and that of its allies.
And contrary to Kerry’s false claim, nuclear retaliation CAN sometimes deter terrorists – by deterring their state sponsors.
Kerry claims he wants to see the “commitment to arms control and nonproliferation” that started under Richard Nixon renewed, but that commitment should’ve never been made in the first place. For arms control has been an utter failure for US national security and national interests.
America has cut its nuclear arsenal by 75% since the Cold War’s putative end in 1991. However, since then, China and India have significantly INCREASED and modernized their nuclear arsenals while two new countries joined the nuclear club: Pakistan and North Korea. And now, Iran is well on its way there. Meanwhile, Russia has begun rebuilding and significantly modernizing its nuclear arsenal from its 1990s nadir. It is now developing 3-4 ICBM types and a “pseudo-ICBM” to circumvent the INF treaty as well as retaining its huge lead in tactical nukes.
Arms control has utterly failed to reduce nuclear arsenals outside the US and Russia, prevent Russia’s nuclear re-building and rapid modernization, or prevent nuclear proliferation, as two new entrants joined the nuclear club.
By all evidence – by the facts – arms control has been an utter failure and has been detrimental to US national security and interests.
Kerry reminds his readers that New START is merely the first cut the Obama administration intends to make in America’s arsenal, while falsely claiming that it will make “only those reductions which are in US interests – and those of our allies.” That assurance is entirely hollow, however. It’s not credible. The Obama team does not care one whit about America’s security; its goal is to “cut America down to size”, as Obama bundler George Soros has openly stated.
If they really cared about America’s and its allies’ security, they would not be making cuts in America’s nuclear arsenal, especially not at this perilous time as America’s enemies rapidly grow and modernize their arsenals and America’s allies rely on the American umbrella for protection against these common enemies. And they wouldn’t be stalling the modernization of America’s deterrent and its supporting infrastructure or lying about the threat environment.
Not one of their assurances is credible. They are all lies. Obama does not honor his promises – except to America’s enemies.
Moreover, NO reductions in America’s nuclear arsenal are in her national interests. None whatsoever. Cutting that – or any other – weapon arsenal only weakens America’s defenses, thus emboldening America’s enemies to perpetrate nuclear blackmail (as North Korea does now) or even potentially aggression (as North Korea threatens to do).
Cutting America’s nuclear deterrent – or any other part of America’s defenses – is especially foolish today, as Russia and China rapidly grow and modernize their already large nuclear arsenals, North Korea grows its own (and threatens to use it), and Iran speeds up nuclear weapons development. It is always foolish, but particularly in such dangerous times.
Kerry falsely claims that cutting the US nuclear arsenal will make for “a more stable and secure world.” Again, that is a blatant lie. In fact, it will produce the opposite: a more unstable and dangerous planet.
Not only will it mean dramatically weakening America’s defenses, it will force America’s allies to develop their own nuclear weapons, since they cannot bet their own security and their very survival on America breaking free of its “nuclear disarmament will make us safer” kool aid. 66.5% of South Koreans already want to “go nuclear.”
And no, the world won’t be peaceful. Just the opposite. Recall that, prior to 1945 (nuclear weapons’ advent), for humanity’s entire history there were no nuclear weapons (and thus nothing to moderate the world’s great powers). The result? Dozens of long, bloody wars between the planet’s great powers, whole countries laying in waste, tens of millions of people dead (mostly civilians), people starving, and countries in revolution. World War 2 alone killed over 60 million people.
By contrast, since 1945, there has been NO war between the great powers.
Nuclear disarmament is not a desirable goal. It would be an utter disaster for US national security.
John Kerry admonishes American citizens, policy analysts, and politicians to focus on “the facts.” But none of his claims are “facts”, despite his desperate insistence on using that word. All of his claims are blatant lies, as demonstrated above.
But we shouldn’t be surprised. This is the man who, as a veteran, appeased Jane Fonda and badmouthed American troops, and as Senator, voted against every crucial weapon system the US military has employed – B-2 bombers, F-14 and F-15 fighters, Trident ballistic missiles, the Strategic Defense Initiative, the Apache helicopter, etc. He’s a fierce enemy of a strong national defense.
Shame on Secretary Kerry for lying so blatantly, and shame on all Senators who voted to confirm him.
