HOLD THE DEFENSE CUTS

The Clinton Administration, suddenly unconvinced that Russia has the wherewithal to cut its nuclear arsenal as planned, is hedging its bets on military security. Defense Secretary William Perry today complained that Moscow has fallen behind in dismantling of thousands of nuclear weapons called for under the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty. The apparent reason: "internal turmoil and old thinking," Perry said, as well as the high cost. In response, he said, the U.S. will keep its long-range missiles till Russia gets off the dime. BTW: Russia still has 25,000 nukes -- enough to destroy the world many times over.

Quotes of the Day »

RAY KELLY, New York City Police Commissioner, on the arrest of a New Jersey man in one of the nation's most baffling missing-children cases, the disappearance more than three decades ago of 6-year-old Etan Patz.
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