McCain: US won't reinstate waterboarding

Republican Senator John McCain who was tortured as a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War, says the US won't reinstate waterboarding.

Senator John McCain. (AAP)

Senator John McCain. Source: AAP

A leading Republican voice on national security matters says he doesn't care what President-elect Donald Trump says, the United States will not reinstate waterboarding.

Senator John McCain, chairman of the Armed Services Committee, said on Saturday at the Halifax International Security Forum that any attempt to bring back harsh interrogation techniques such as waterboarding, which simulates drowning, would quickly be challenged in court.

McCain, who was tortured as a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War, says extreme interrogation techniques are banned under US law and the Geneva Conventions.

During the campaign, Trump said he would push to change laws that prohibit waterboarding used against suspected terrorists during the George W Bush administration.

McCain, the 2008 Republican presidential nominee, says waterboarding doesn't work and makes it hard for the US to claim moral superiority.

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Published 20 November 2016 2:26pm
Updated 20 November 2016 4:30pm
Source: AAP


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