Posted on 01/26/2006 7:10:49 PM PST by blam
Germany 'needs a nuclear arsenal of its own'
By Kate Connolly in Berlin
(Filed: 27/01/2006)
A former defence minister has provoked outrage and broken a major taboo by suggesting that Germany should have its own nuclear arsenal.
Rupert Scholz argued that Berlin needed to embrace the idea of a nuclear deterrent in the light of threats from terrorists and the Middle East.
"We need to ask ourselves how we could react in an appropriate manner to a nuclear threat from a terror state, and if needs be, even by using our own nuclear weapons," he said.
Mr Scholz, 68, who was the defence minister in Helmut Kohl's government in 1988 and 1989, said he doubted whether other nations' guarantees, made during the Cold War, to keep Germany safe in the face of a nuclear threat, could still be trusted.
"Without the appropriate guarantees of protection by our partners, the question of our own nuclear deterrent needs to be discussed openly," he said.
"I am aware that I am addressing a taboo. But in the light of the dangers that weapons of mass destruction could end up in the hands of terrorists, this is a question which deserves serious debate."
Germany agreed not to develop nuclear weapons after the Second World War in return for protection from the United States and Nato.
Mr Scholz's comments came under attack yesterday.
The security spokesman for the opposition Free Democrats, Rainer Stinner, accused him of "throwing oil on the fire" of the tension between Iran and the West.
Rainer Arnold, the defence spokesman for the Social Democrats, part of the governing coalition, said Mr Scholz's remarks would not be taken seriously.
Aint gonna happen Fritz
Germany already owns France ~ that's all the nukes they need anyway.
NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO WAY should the Krauts be trusted with nukes. Don't the terms of their surrender prevent this?
Then they chose not to support us in Iraq. Now they see how unprotected they really are.
Go figure.
We've still got our stockpile. And if Europe ever got nuked, all the French and German jokes would be gone in a second as we vaporized those responsible.
Germany does not need its own nuclear weapons as long as the US Army is based inside that territory.
Germany also owns Russia. Kinda makes one wonder sometimes what that business in the early 40s was about.
> ... the idea of a nuclear deterrent in the light
> of threats from terrorists and the Middle East.
This is a satire, right?
Deterrence (e.g. MAD) only works when neither side
actually is mad.
The "threats from terrorists and the Middle East"
are being made by insane people who primarily threaten
Israel, which probably already does have nukes, and
that arsenal is not deterring Iran, nor would it deter
any thugs they'd arm.
If this loon speaks for Germany, then both sides are mad.
Uh, I think we decided that would be a bad idea. And stopped you.
It's about time to bring the troops home.
Besides, you'd promptly nuke the French and then who would we have to mock?
"Germany agreed not to develop nuclear weapons after the Second World War in return for protection from the United States and Nato. "
Hey Hans....it's a two-way street to get into our circle of trust. If your country would simply side with us against terror and help us fight the war, you'd be well-protected and we probably wouldn't be moving some of our bases and military resources out of your country.
Who's going to stop them?
Looks like Germany has been doing some peaking over at the next urinal given all the noise that Chirac has been making lately....
The entire world with exception of NK and Iran are onboard with non proliferation of nuclear arms.
Of course that didnt stop China or India or Pakistan
I'd say the Russians wouldn't be too buddy-buddy with them not long after they got nukes.
Seems to me that the EU is seriously rattled by the Iranian nuclear threat.
The appropraite response is to allie with the world against Iran.
France has the nukes necessary to deter Iran from striking the EU
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