ACCESSION NUMBER:235932
FILE ID:TX-201
DATE:07/21/92
TITLE:AMERICA'S DEFENSE STRATEGY (07/21/92)
TEXT:*92072101.TXT  POEDIT  VOA EDITORIAL  MS
AMERICA'S DEFENSE STRATEGY

(VOA Editorial)  (500)
(Following is an editorial, broadcast by the Voice of America July 21,
reflecting the views of the U.S. government.)

In a recent speech, Admiral David Jeremiah, Vice Chairman of the U.S.
Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that, "The Cold War was the longest sustained
military effort in American history."  Referring to the dramatic events
that have transformed Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, Admiral
Jeremiah said that, "One positive consequence of our Cold War victory is
the spread of democratic principles.  But there are other consequences as
well -- not all of them so positive."

Ethnic conflict, regional instability, and the proliferation of nuclear
weapons technology continue to pose a significant threat to peace and
security in the post-Cold War world.  To meet these challenges, the United
States is redefining its national defense strategy.

A central pillar of America's defense strategy remains deterrence.  For more
than 40 years, America's nuclear arsenal effectively safeguarded the free
world from the threat of a nuclear-armed Soviet Union.  That threat is gone
and the United States is working with Russia and the other new states of
the former Soviet Union to eliminate thousands of nuclear weapons and
delivery systems.  But Russia will retain several thousand nuclear weapons
after these reductions are completed.  Elsewhere in the world,
anti-democratic regimes possess, or seek to obtain, nuclear weapons.  So
long as nuclear weapons remain in the hands of a potential aggressor, the
United States will not dismantle its nuclear deterrent capability.

The presence of U.S. military forces in regions still threatened by
potential aggressors is another pillar of U.S. strategy.  Such deployments
are necessary to insure a rapid response to regional crises.  In Asia, the
U.S. presence has helped to maintain stability.  In Europe, the U.S.
association with NATO continues to provide a guarantee of security in a
region still threatened by dangerous ethnic conflicts.  In the Middle East,
the rapid deployment of U.S. forces was decisive in the defeat of Iraqi
aggression and the liberation of Kuwait.  To insure that the United States
can aid nations threatened by aggression, ships, aircraft, transport
vehicles, and the facilities and bases for handling them must be
maintained.

As new defense requirements and technologies emerge, the United States will
continue to upgrade its armed forces.  Outmoded weapons systems will be
discarded, bases and facilities that are no longer needed will be closed.
Current modernization plans include the closing of nearly 700 military
bases worldwide and the cancellation or curtailment of more than 100
weapons programs.  Military manpower will be reduced by nearly 500,000
personnel.

1n adapting its defense strategy to a changing world, the United States has
not forgotten the costly lessons of the Second World War and the Korean
war.  Failure to maintain a strong military posture could encourage
aggression -- and that is a mistake that neither the United States nor its
friends wish to see repeated.

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