Chirac raises threat of nuclear strikes

[Dover]

Chirac raises threat of nuclear strikes


Friday 20 January 2006, 11:09 Makka Time, 8:09 GMT


French president Jacques Chirac has provoked concern and criticism from opposition parties at home and in Germany after suggesting the threat of a nuclear strike against any state that launches terrorist attacks on French soil.

It was the first time Chirac has spoken publicly of nuclear action against foreign countries and he said France's doctrine of nuclear deterrence has now been extended to protect the country's "strategic supplies", taken to mean oil.

Speaking during a visit to a French nuclear bas in Brittany Chirac said: "Leaders of any state that uses terrorist means against us, as well as any that may be envisaging - in one way or another - using weapons of mass destruction, must understand that they would be exposing themselves to a firm and appropriate response on our behalf."

"That response could be conventional, it could also be of another nature," he said in a clear reference to nuclear weapons...cont'd

http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/789F2532-A266-468D-BCD2-46010F2261C1.htm

[no_more_rhyming]

1. France and Chirac

Taking the lead. Their own war on terra.

[rayofreason]

2. I saw this on BBC yesterday...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4627862.stm

All I could do is shake my head.

[don954]

3. guess he is tired of all the wimpy french jokes in america

now they are going to go off on them saying he's a nutter..! And still more of them are going to have their heads explode 'cause this is what they want bush to do but "french" arent supposed to be so right wing!

[The Stranger]

4. Wasn't this how the first World War started?

Albeit, long before there were nuclear weapons?

[MrPrax]

5. Open ended threat...

"Leaders of any state that uses terrorist means against us..."

Since Iran doesn't have any, one would think that this would apply to countries that DO have them...like the US or Israel. Chirac seems to be re-stating the France's policy...attack us and get attacked.

It could be the veiled threat is against the US and their pre-emptive strike policies which have been the same since the start of the cold war.

[NVMojo]

6. another version from MSNBC on this story here ...

http://news.moneycentral.msn.com/provider/providerarticle.asp?feed=FT&Date=20060120&ID=5431237

[unkachuck]

7. see....

....it wasn't Communism during the Cold War that was about to end the world as we knew it in a cloud of nuclear vapor....Communism is long gone and still that potential cloud and threat of being fried alive with nuclear weapons continues....

....to the untrained eye, one might suspect it was Capitalism and Capitalist all along....fighting over their religions and global resources....