John Shalikashvili

Everything depends on the party's own commitment to peace.

We have given that question very careful consideration in our Armed Services Committee hearings in recent weeks, as well as in consultations with the Secretaries of Defense, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Shalikashvili, and Assistant Secretary of State Holbrooke.

Secretary Perry and Ambassador Holbrooke made very clear that the parties initiated the Dayton Peace Agreement and will sign the Paris Peace Agreement because they are tired of war.

not because the United States or anyone else imposed it upon them.

My first assignment was when I was enlisted back in 1992, and I was stationed in the Netherlands, uh, working for Second Allied Tactical Air Force.

That was a very interesting assignment until, uh, then General Shalikashvili, who was SACEUR at the time, reorganized NATO and shut us down.

So, uh, I, I had to leave my wonderful NATO assignment.

So get the career arc of this guy, folks.

And so we had a chance to discuss with President Clinton the importance of nuclear testing.

However, then beyond that, as you well know, that was very much in the purview of the Department of Energy, namely Vic Rees and Charles Curtis as well, the discussion that was key was actually a discussion of the three lab directors, along with Curtis and Vic Rees, with General Shalikashvili.

And that was in the Pentagon in 1995.

And it was actually, it was that meeting and that discussion that created the practice of certification, annual certification of nuclear weapons.

We did not, the lab directors did not have such an annual certification before.

We just worked the issue with the military.

And the way it came about is in the meeting with General Shalikashvili, I still remember him looking me directly in the eyes, and this guy had these steely blue eyes that penetrated your whole body.

And he asked me, he said, Dr. Hecker, do I have to tell President Clinton that we must test the nuclear weapons to keep them safe, reliable, and effective? And of course, I mean, the weight of the world was on my shoulders at that point.