Word: shields
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...proposing to upend the dominance of offensive weapons over defenses, long central to nuclear peace. As President, he said, he would unilaterally slash U.S. nukes, take the remaining ones off hair-trigger alert, then "invite" Moscow to follow suit. To keep the nation safe, he'd build a vast shield to protect the entire U.S. and its allies against all rogue-state missiles...
...questionable but politically sharp. Gore and his spokesmen were left to sputter about Bush's "irresponsible" proposal and how it proved the Governor's inexperience. Indeed, Bush was fuzzy on how many nukes he'd unilaterally cut, something congressional Republicans and the Pentagon have always resisted. His grand missile shield is far larger than what Clinton proposes and is based mostly on unproven technology that could cost hundreds of billions of dollars. And his list of campaign promises is adding up to a mountain of new spending, creating doubts about how he can fund them...
...more cautious cut-and-defend security plan look wimpy. The President was hoping to neutralize Republican complaints that he's leaving Americans defenseless against rogue-state missiles by backing a limited defense beginning with 100 interceptors based in Alaska. His aides share the widespread doubts that even a small shield is technically feasible. Clinton wants to jawbone Russia into modifying the treaty outlawing antiballistic defenses, while Bush vows he'd just scrap...
...What Washington calls 'renegotiating,' Moscow calls 'destroying' a treaty they see as the cornerstone of arms control," says Meier. The logic of the ABM was that neither side would create a shield that would allow it to fire nuclear missiles at the other without fear of devastating retaliation. Although Clinton hopes to persuade them that the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction among "rogue states" necessitates a new approach, the Russians see even the limited plan he has proposed as the thin end of a wedge that could ultimately neutralize their own nuclear deterrent...
...Missile defense remains politically popular in the U.S. - so much so that the administration favors the limited version designed to deploy some 250 interceptor missiles against "rogue states," while the Bush campaign favors a massive missile shield that protects the U.S. and its allies from all missile threats. This despite the fact that skeptics have questioned everything from the system's cost and viability to its potential to destabilize the existing arms control regime. Some of Washington's key European allies used President Clinton's valedictory tour this week to echo Russia's warning that building a missile-defense system...