Brian Bradley
NS&D Monitor
7/17/2015
Despite progress on global nuclear disarmament, there is little chance of a world without the bomb, Adm. William Gortney, commander of U.S. Northern Command and North American Aerospace Defense Command, said during a speech at the State Department on Wednesday. “The nuclear genie’s there, and until everybody wants to do away with nuclear weapons, we have to be prepared to respond with our nuclear weapons,” Gortney said during the Generation Prague Conference. “The world’s a pretty dangerous place, and we’d all like to put the nuclear genie back into the box, but we can’t, and so I just don’t see that happening.”
Disarmament as a Cost Saver
Steady disarmament saves the Pentagon money, Gortney said. “I think it’s a good idea to reduce the numbers, because for every one I have, I have to recapitalize,” he said. “So not only is there a good reason to make the world a little bit of a safer place and reduce the number of nuclear weapons that can be out there for any purpose. We think that’s a good cause, plus it drives our costs down, because it’s a very expensive proposition and they all have to be recapitalized at our core number, so this is a good path to be on.”
‘Having More Than the Next’
But in answering an audience question, Gortney said an appropriate future national deterrent would entail simply “having more than the next” country. He continued: “I mean, that’s a pure military answer, but at the end of the day, until our opponents want to do the same thing and follow up with the same course of action and are willing to come to the table and do that, we’ve come a long way. We’re moving on the right path, but I won’t see us being nuclear-free in my lifetime nor yours.” The lingering threat of non-state actors obtaining a nuclear bomb will significantly hinder complete global nuclear disarmament, Gortney said. “I think it’s a noble cause, but will we be successful and get to zero? No,” he said.
