Experts warn that by threatening to violate the international moratorium on nuclear testing the U.S. nuclear posture could lift the taboo on use of such weapons and possibly encourage proliferation.
Defense experts suggest that the new U.S. nuclear doctrine blurs the line between conventional and nuclear weapons by raising the issue of their adaption for use in combat rather than in deterrence as was the case during the Cold War.
The United States possesses an impressive arsenal of electronic surveillance devices highly effective against conventional troop movements but likely to prove less useful in tracking down terrorist networks in Afghanistan, experts have warned.