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Russia's Dangerous Nuclear Arsenal
In some ways the world is closer to nuclear conflict than in the 1950s and '60s.
Then, at least, the Soviet nuclear forces were under tight control and the military
was well paid.
by Mario Seiglie
"Russian military officers stared wide-eyed
at the glowing image on their radar screens: an incoming missile on course to hit
Moscow in 15 minutes . . . One buzz went to the three nuclear code briefcases
assigned to President Boris Yeltsin and his top two military officials. The officer
carrying Yeltsin's case rushed to the President and flipped it open. On an electronic
map inside, they saw a bright dot over the Norwegian Sea. Beneath the map was a row
of buttons, offering a menu of attack options on targets in the U.S. On military
bases across Russia, red lights flashed and horns blared, alerting the troops in
charge of the country's strategic nuclear weapons to get ready to use them."
This may sound like another plot out of a Hollywood blockbuster, but it isn't. It
really happened on Jan. 25, 1995. Then why are we still alive?
"Yeltsin and his military commanders, linked by phone, waited to hear whether
an attack had been confirmed. About 12 minutes after the mystery missile soared onto
the radar screens, military analysts could see that it was not heading for Russian
territory. It turned out to be a Norwegian scientific rocket sent aloft to observe
the aurora borealis. The Norwegians had dutifully notified the Russian embassy in
Oslo, but the word was never relayed to the military. 'For a while,' says Sergei
Yushenkov, a member of the Russian parliament's Defense Committee, 'the world was
on the brink of nuclear war' " (Newsweek, "Nuclear Disarray"
(May 19, 1997).
Mix-ups Common
In light of this scenario, Russia's December announcement that, in spite of its
precarious financial condition it intended to deploy the Topol-M, should cause the
world serious concern. The Topol-M is a powerful new intercontinental ballistic missile.
U.S. News & World Report asked in a headline, "Just When You Thought You
Were Safe . . . Could a False Alarm Still Start a Nuclear War?" (Feb. 10,
1997).
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