Read the full piece in the Huffington Post.
The meaning of Trump’s comments wasn’t entirely clear, in part because he weighed in on the incredibly complex matter using Twitter, a medium that limits dispatches to 140 characters, said former Rep. John Tierney (D-Mass.), executive director of the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation.
But Trump’s comments taken alone, and especially when coupled with Putin’s, “are heated and careless,” Tierney said. The U.S. and Russia should cooperate in the goal of reducing the role of nuclear weapons, as they have since the Cold War, he added.
“This is a time for leadership, not bravado,” Tierney said. “Russia and the U.S. already own over 93 percent of the world’s nuclear arsenal ― more than enough to deter the other and destroy humanity. This is a time for both Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin to come to their senses. Billions of lives are at stake.”
