The following are editorial opinions from newspapers from around the world which may be of interest to Royal Gazette readers.

Khaleej Times, Dubai, UAE,–on US nuclear arms reduction initiative:

Nuclear arms reduction figures prominently on President Barack Obama's agenda. As a first step, Washington has sought a sizeable reduction in its strategic arsenal. While the final objective is to rid the world of nuclear weapons, proliferation also remains top priority.

The US initiative includes the reformulation of the country's nuclear doctrine, promising a dramatic reduction in the existing arsenal while maintaining a strong and reliable deterrence. Such a measure implies a shift in focus towards bolstering conventional weapons capability.

Obama's ability to implement a drastic cut at home is likely to bear impact on negotiations for replacing the 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) with Russia. Moscow has so far pledged commitment and is cooperating with the US towards mutual strategic reduction. It is positive to see the two former rivals reach a consensus in this crucial zone of strategic influence despite differences in other arenas such as Nato expansion and the US plans to set up a missile defence shield in Eastern Europe. US efforts to rope in Russia to bear on Tehran to relinquish its activities in (alleged) pursuit of nuclear weapons has become a major issue. Moscow, while opposing a nuclear-armed Iran, has opposed possible military action or imposition of sanctions, in line with US policy of deterrence. ...

Washington is believed to be looking into the curtailment of development of a new generation of nuclear weapons. The idea is to prove US commitment towards reversing the trend. By taking this step at this juncture it hopes to strengthen its stand at the forthcoming Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty review conference. The idea is to seek a tightening of the NPT regime controls, specifically aimed at Iran and North Korea.

It may be a better idea for the US to reassess ground realities and explore new avenues of obtaining its objectives before going gung ho on Iran. Nuclear reduction and anti-proliferation drive will require more than grand gestures, especially when they are viewed as hypocritical — and one-sided.