In one of your recent editorials, you talk of declaring war against terrorism but there has been little discussion of the political fights that must be won to assure victory.
We cannot afford to lose the struggle to end proliferation of nuclear, biological and chemical weapons. We must realise that although the events have taken a tragic turn, we must face the terrible truth that if the terrorists had acquired and used nuclear weapons, casualties might have been measured in millions instead of thousands.
If we are serious about defeating terrorism, we must take the lead in international efforts to inventory and control weapons-grade nuclear material, strengthen the chemical weapons control regime, fully support other countries’ non-proliferation efforts and return to negotiations toward a strong and workable biological weapons convention. Let our worsening situation inspire us to action to ensure that an attack of a large scale will never again occur.
USAMA QADIR
Karachi
