Nexus - 0216 - New Times Magazine-pages

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letins a rather lengthy piece concerning America's latest development in weapon- ry—the non-lethal weapons concept. David Shukman, BBC Defence Correspondent, interviewed (Retired) US Army Colonel John B. Alexander and Janet Morris, two of the main proponents of the concept.’ The concept of non-lethal weapons is not new. Non-lethal weapons have been used by the intelligence, police and defence establishments in the past.?- Several western governments have used a variety of non- lethal weapons in a more discreet and covert manner, It seems that the US government is about to take the first step towards their open use. The current interest in the concept of non-lethal weapons began about a decade ago with John Alexander. In December 1980 he published an article in the US Army's jour- nal, Military Review, "The New Mental Battlefield", referring to claims that telepathy could be used to interfere with the brain's electrical activity. This caught the attention of senior Army generals who encouraged him to pursue what they termed "soft option kill" technologies. After retiring from the Army in 1988, Alexander joined the Los Alamos National Laboratories and began working with Janet Morris, the Research Director of the US Global Strategy Council (USGSC), chaired by Dr Ray Cline, former Deputy Director of the CIA.’ I examine the background of Janet Morris and John Alexander in more detail below. Throughout 1990 the USGSC lobbied the main national laboratories, major defence contractors and industries, retired senior military and intelligence officers. The result was the creation of a Non-lethality Policy Review Group, led by Major General Chris S. Adams, USAF (retired), former Chief of Staff, Strategic Air Command,‘ They already have the support of Senator Sam Nunn, chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee. According to Janet Morris, the military attaché at the Russian Embassy has contacted USGSC about the possibility of converting military hardware to a non-lethal capability. In 1991 Janet Morris issued a number of papers giving more detailed information about USGSC's concept of non-lethal weapons.’ Shortly after, the US Army Training and Doctrine Command at Fort Monroe, VA, published a detailed draft report on the subject, titled "Operations Concept for Disabling Measures". The report included over twenty projects in which John Alexander is currently involved at the Los Alamos National Laboratories. QO: April 22, 1993, both BBC1 and BBC2 showed on their main evening news bul- The weapons of tomorrow will not only be aimed at hitting your body... ...they will also be aimed at your mind. The weapons of tomorrow will not only be aimed at hitting your body... In a memorandum dated April 10, 1991, titled "Do we need a Non-lethal Defense Initiative?", Paul Wolfwitz, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, wrote to Defense Secretary Dick Cheney, "A US lead in non-lethal technologies will increase our options and reinforce our position in the post-Cold War world. Our Research and Development efforts must be increased.” By Armen Victorian To support their non-lethal weapons concept, Janet Morris argues that while "war will always be terrible..., a world power deserving its reputation for humane action should pio- neer the principles of non-lethal defense."* In “Defining a non-lethal strategy", she seeks to establish a doctrine for the use of non-lethal weapons by the US in crisis "at home or abroad in a life serving fashion." She totally disregards the offensive, lethal aspects inher- ent in some of the weapons in question, or their misuse, should they become available to ‘rogue’ nations. Despite her arguments that non-lethal weapons should serve the US's interests "at home and abroad by projecting power without indiscriminately taking lives or destroying property,"’ she admits that "casualties cannot be avoided,"* 12¢NEXUS HOW LETHAL IS NON-LETHAL? OCTOBER - NOVEMBER 1993