The Obama administration has formally unveiled its new policy on nuclear weapons that maintains the right to use nukes in launching attacks on other nations. Anti-nuclear activists and some Democratic lawmakers were hoping Obama would issue a blanket statement that the US would never again be the first to use nuclear weapons. Announcing the policy in Washington, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the US would only pledge to not use the weapons against non-nuclear states that comply with the Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton: “We are enforcing our commitment to the NPT (Non-Proliferation Treaty) by stating clearly, for the first time, that the United States will not use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear weapon states that are party to the NPT and in compliance with their nonproliferation obligations.”

The policy also maintains the US can attack nations for violating the NPT. Defense Secretary Robert Gates singled out Iran and North Korea in asserting that “all options are on the table.”

Defense Secretary Robert Gates: “If there is a message for Iran and North Korea here, it is that if you’re going to play by the rules, if you’re going to join the international community, then we will undertake certain obligations to you. And that’s covered in the NPR. But if you’re not going to play by the rules, if you’re going to be a proliferator, then all options are on the table in terms of how we deal with you.”

Critics say the new strategy doesn’t go far enough in meeting President Obama’s stated pledge to reduce nuclear proliferation. In a statement, Kevin Martin of Peace Action said, “[The new policy] appears to be too beholden to outdated Cold War thinking, and it doesn’t measure up to [President Obama’s] vision of a nuclear-free world.”