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Good science vital to good diplomacy: Albright

WASHINGTON: From the atmosphere to the oceans to the nuclear test ban treaty, good science is vital to good diplomacy, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright told a convention of scientists on Monday.

"Simply put, arms control often is rocket science, and we must keep good rocket scientists in our midst if we hope to keep doing it well," the nation's top diplomat said.

Speaking to the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Albright suggested several ways that "good science" was "most vital to good diplomacy." Among them:

Ñ The scientific knowledge that led to an agreement to phase out ozone-depleting chemicals.

Ñ Assurances that the country's security would not be harmed by agreeing to a nuclear test ban treaty.

Ñ Resolving key issues that led to agreement with Canada to manage North America's Pacific salmon fishery.

"It was first-rate science that alerted us to the loss of stratospheric ozone and the threat this poses to human health," Albright said. "The evidence was so compelling, it led to an international agreement known as the Montreal Protocol, under which ozone-depleting chemicals are being phased out around the world."

Albright said there "would be no viable treaty" to ban nuclear tests without the scientific conclusion that national security could be secure without testing.

"And because the science behind the treaty is sound, I am convinced the U.S. will ultimately join and thus help ensure that the nuclear arms race becomes a relic of the 20th century, not a recurring nightmare of the 21st," she said.