The West must be prepared to carry out pre-emptive nuclear strikes to halt the spread of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction, according to a radical manifesto for a new NATO by five of the West's most senior military officers and strategists.
Calling for reform of NATO and a new pact drawing the U.S., NATO and the European Union together in a "grand strategy" to tackle the challenges of an increasingly brutal world, the former armed forces chiefs from the U.S., Britain, Germany, France and The Netherlands insist a "first strike" nuclear option remains an "indispensable instrument" since there is "simply no realistic prospect of a nuclear-free world."
The document had been presented to the Pentagon and NATO's Secretary-General, The Guardian newspaper reported Tuesday.
The manifesto is likely to be discussed at a NATO summit in Bucharest, Romania, in April.
The authors include some of the top defense minds in the West, including Gen. John Shalikashvili, the former chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff and NATO's former supreme commander in Europe.
The others are Gen. Klaus Naumann, Germany's former top soldier and ex-chairman of NATO's military committee; Gen. Henk van den Breemen, a former Dutch chief of staff; Adm. Jacques Lanxade, a former French chief of staff; and Lord Inge, field marshal and ex-chief of the general staff and the defense staff in the U.K.
