The control on weapons of mass destruction

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Facing the complex and changing reality of threats stemming from the proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD), to which international terrorism added new ramifications after September 11th, European countries are directly involved, as well as the European Union as such. Two essential questions in this regard are posed : the first one concerns the differences between the United States and Europe in terms of threat perceptions, where there is much to think about; the second concerns precisely threats on Europe : what are they really and are there any that are specific ? Answers to these threats must be based on a well-balanced combination of four big modes of action : deterrence, prevention, political-military action, protection. This presentation briefly reviews what could be the building blocks of a European security doctrine with respect to WMD, still in the making, and emphasizes what role has to be played, in different respects, by deterrence, formal and informal arms control and theater missile defense systems. –Summary AFRI-2003