Strategic Assessment
The administration of George W. Bush is accused of adopting a new nuclear doctrine that includes the possibility of using nuclear weapons against threats that are non-nuclear in nature, for example, to deter use of chemical and biological weapons, and even as an alternative to conventional weapons in attacking well fortified targets. In practice, such ideas were already formulated and established during the administrations of the elder Bush and Clinton. Lately the argument over the nuclear doctrine has spilled over to the current presidential campaign and has caused an uproar in Washington. Yet despite the criticism, it seems that no one – neither the Republican nor the Democratic candidates – has any actual intention of changing the nuclear doctrine once voted into the White House.