Recent news reports have indicated that the Iranians are continuing with their nuclear weapons program.
The rhetoric from Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is that he wants to wipe Israel off the face of the Earth.
Then we have the megalomaniac from North Korea, Kim Jong-il, whose perverse view of the world is to launch nuclear weapons against the United States.
But we cannot forget our good friends the Russians and their new alliance with Hugo Chavez and his socialist government in Venezuela.
Open-source news reports state that Chavez is actively seeking Russian assistance in developing a nuclear energy program. That's another name for nuclear weapons.
Yet now we are told the Obama administration has decided to cancel the missile defense shield program for the Czech Republic and Poland ["President: Missile decision not about Russians," Sept. 21].
If I were living in Eastern Europe, I would say, "You can't trust the United States." Why would they?
The Polish tabloid Fakt declared on its front page: "Betrayal! The U.S. sold us to Russia and stabbed us in the back."
I understand politics, but for the Obama administration to openly abandon our NATO allies in the midst of these growing threats is tantamount to gross negligence in protecting our national security interests.
I hope that the Obama administration realizes the error of its ways before it is too late.
In a 1948 speech, Omar Bradley said, "The way to win an atomic war is to make certain it never starts."
Therefore, it is in our best interest that this country be prepared to defend itself and its allies against adversaries bent on our total annihilation.
Neil J. Hornung
Spotsylvania