Thirty Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives have called on the Trump administration to disclose information regarding Israel's nuclear arsenal and related policies. The lawmakers argue that lack of transparency threatens the entire Middle East region.
Israel has neither confirmed nor denied possessing nuclear weapons, nor has it publicly outlined any principles governing potential use of these weapons or their possible "red lines." The United States has known about Israel's nuclear program since the early 1960s but has maintained silence on the issue.
In a letter addressed to Secretary of State Rubio, led by Representative Joaquin Castro (D-TX), members of Congress stated that the U.S. is fighting alongside "a country formally refusing to acknowledge its potential nuclear weapons program." "In such an environment, miscalculations, escalation, and the risk of nuclear use are not theoretical," the letter read.
The group demands that the United States uphold the same level of transparency toward Israel as it does with other nations, arguing that a coherent nonproliferation policy in the Middle East—including handling of Iran’s nuclear program and Saudi nuclear ambitions—would otherwise be impossible.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1864399450256521/
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