A Bolder Germany

[Henry C.K. Liu]

Re Kennan futile letter to Acheson proposing unilateral nuclear
disarmament in 1946, as claimed by his letter to the HK Standard on new
German attitude on No First Use, 
there was a report by Roger Cohen in the NY Times (Saturday, December
12, 1998), describes the new posture of the Social Democratic government
of
Germany as a "refreshing liberation".  Specifically, the report cites
Shroder's attack of Germany's unfair contribution to a wasteful European
budget, Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer's suggestion for NATO to change
its nuclear policy and Finance Minister Oskar LaFontaine's remark about
American-style globalization not to his taste. Schroder's recent
declaration that Germany should show the "self confidence of a nation
that has come of age"  is also reiterated in the report.
No First Use was a doctrine subscribed to by China. The United State has
steadfastly refused to agree.
I would be interested to hear from European and EU specialists on this.

Henry C.K. Liu