Publication

This paper details how the US National Security Strategy (NSS) 2002 states that in order to forestall or prevent attacks by rogue states and terrorists with weapons of mass destruction (WMD), the US might have to act pre-emptively. The author describes how the doctrinal statement was used to justify the 2003 Iraq War and how it may be used to justify future wars against countries such as Iran, North Korea or Syria. The paper examines whether such a strategy is likely to work and looks at the general history and track record of preventive attacks against WMD programs.