US once again selects strategic nuclear base for talks with Japan

WASHINGTON -- In an annual display of nuclear muscle, U.S. government officials showed their Japanese counterparts a fleet of B-52 strategic bombers on an Air Force base in Louisiana.
The first Extended Deterrence Dialogue of President Donald Trump's second administration was held last Thursday and Friday at Barksdale Air Force Base, home of Air Force Global Strike Command. Photos of the visit were released on Monday.

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Japan to set up evacuation shelters on island near Taiwan by 2027

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Demonstrators in the United States on June 22 protest the attack on Iran. (Reuters photo) The world stands at a crossroads over whether a quagmire of war will once again erupt in the Middle East. The U.S. military joined in Israel's attack on Iran and bombed three nuclear facilities. If Iran should retaliate and attack U.S. military bases scattered around the Persian Gulf, it could escalate into an all-out war involving the United States and other Middle Eastern nations. That would have an enormous effect on the security and economy of the world. We call on all relevant nations to exercise the maximum level of restraint. There is a need for the global community to make every diplomatic effort to calm the situation. JOINING THE WAR CANNOT BE LEGITIMIZED We are reminded of another act of force by the United States in the Middle East--the 2003 war on Iraq. Washington presented evidence to the U.N. Security Council that claimed Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein had hidden possession of weapons of mass destruction. But the United States was unable to obtain the support of many nations for a resolution authorizing the use of force. It proceeded with an attack with only a few allies, such as Britain. It was later made clear that the evidence presented was false. In the latest case, there was not even debate within the Security Council. Israel launched a first-strike attack on Iran with its one-sided argument that Tehran was close to possessing nuclear weapons. The United States then cooperated with an attack on underground facilities that Israel by itself could not destroy. In March, the head of U.S. national intelligence testified before a U.S. Senate committee session and said Iran had not manufactured nuclear weapons. But U.S. President Donald Trump called that assessment wrong in order to legitimize the attack. That was a violation of the U.N. Charter, which bans the use of force to resolve conflicts except in cases of self-defense. It was to be expected that U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres criticized the U.S. move as a 'direct threat' to international peace and security. Two days after Trump announced he would make a decision on Iran within two weeks, what can be described as a surprise attack was carried out. It also came while the foreign ministers of U.S. allies, including Britain, France and Germany, were meeting with the Iranian foreign minister to seek a diplomatic resolution. We are disheartened by the self-centered act of a superpower. Washington tried to destroy Iran's ability to develop nuclear weapons. If so, it should also try to convince Israel to refrain from further attacks on Iran. Hard-line views within the Iranian leadership will likely strengthen. But we hope it makes a wise decision to avoid further sacrifice from its people. CRISES FOR NPT REGIME It can also be said that what was also destroyed by the attack was the trust in the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty that has played an important role for more than half a century in nuclear arms reduction. The NPT allows only the five nations of the United States, Britain, France, China and Russia to possess nuclear weapons. While it is unequal, almost all U.N. member nations have ratified it not only due to concerns about the proliferation of nuclear weapons, but also because member nations were allowed the right to peaceful use of nuclear power in return. But Israel, which is not a party to the NPT but is said to possess nuclear weapons, attacked nuclear-related facilities of Iran, which has signed the NPT. The superpower United States also joined in the offensive. Iran is not without fault. It continues to increase the volume stored of highly enriched uranium that goes well beyond the level needed for use as fuel in nuclear plants. That led to concerns raised by Europe, which had distanced itself from the Trump administration, and provided Israel with the excuse to carry out its attack. Still, the act of taking away by force a right guaranteed by the NPT must certainly have come as a major shock to non-nuclear nations. This is also an issue that Japan, an NPT member that has operated nuclear plants while accepting inspections by international organizations, cannot brush off as someone else's problem. Not only have the nuclear powers failed to fulfill their obligation under the NPT to make efforts at arms reduction, but have instead moved toward a nuclear buildup. We are gravely concerned about a heightening of the trend toward thinking that it would be more advantageous to leave the NPT and seek to possess nuclear weapons as a means of protecting the security of one's nation. NEW MULTILATERAL COOPERATION NEEDED In addition to Russia, which continues its invasive war, the United States, another permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, has violated international law. The wavering in the rule of law is serious. Western European nations that together supported the postwar order also did not demonstrate the autonomy shown prior to the start of the Iraq War. Not only did the Group of Seven summit not ask Israel to refrain from further expanding the war front, but it even recognized its right to protect itself. Europe, Canada and Japan must fully realize it has shouldered a major responsibility for giving priority to consideration to the Israel-leaning United States rather than to concerns about the ravages of war. Giving tacit consent to an unilateral attack on a major nation is nothing but a double standard and nations will lose the basis for criticizing Russia in the future. In addition to military conflicts in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, a military encounter developed in May between India and Pakistan, which both possess nuclear weapons. In Japan's backyard of East Asia, tensions continue in the Taiwan Strait and on the Korean Peninsula. In this year, the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, the global community is progressing toward an unprecedented crisis zone. While Trump said now was the time to build peace, listening to his announcement that only heaped praise on the attack, it is difficult to believe he has some plan to bring an end to the situation. The international issues unresolved since the Iraq War are a sign not only of the confusion in the Middle East, but also an indication that the world has not yet found a way to deal with an out-of-control United States. Now is a period when the three major powers of the United States, Russia and China are challenging the existing order. What is called for in order not to create a new interwar period is for middle powers such as Western European nations and Japan to hold the resolve to construct a multilateral cooperation structure. --The Asahi Shimbun, June 23