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Terrorist use of weapons of mass destruction threatens Americans and our armed forces every day. To many nations and groups, their only means to counter the United States is with nuclear, biological, or chemical weapons. The terrorist use of weapons of mass destruction is no longer a question of if they will be used, but a question of when they will be used. This paper looks at the US military capability to counter terrorist use of weapons of mass destruction. It describes the terrorist threat to US forces and motives and reasons terrorists would use these types of weapons. Our current national policy, strategy and doctrine highlight the problem, but show a need to improve interagency coordination and cooperation. On the military level, combating the threat is an integral part of our strategy but needs increased emphasis at the planning level. Capabilities exist to deter or counter the threat; protect our forces; and sustain and operate after an NBC attack. But countering a terrorist threat presents unique challenges to future leaders and requires improvements in intelligence, equipment, training and education. The key to defeating the terrorist threat is timely and accurate intelligence for detection, characterization, and countering the threat. Improvements in individual and collective protection are necessary to sustain operations. As important, the military needs to emphasize realistic joint and combined training and needs to add chemical and biological scenarios to future war games. Finally, the US must be prepared to destroy terrorist weapons prior to them being used against us.
