U.K.’s ‘special relationship’ with U.S. under microscope at G8

“The British and the British media have to be very careful in shouting too loudly about this. It's America's worst environmental disaster unfolding in the Gulf, and if you are too defensive about this the mud sticks.”

BASIC Executive Director Paul Ingram quoted in the Times Colonist. Read more:

http://www.timescolonist.com/news/special+relationship+with+under+microscope/3181535/story.html

 

May 2010

May has been an intense and hectic month for BASIC and for nuclear diplomacy. The month-long global Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference (NPT RevCon) in New York draws to a close today.

Recycled leaders like Hague and IDS are better second time around

Yesterday’s announcement that the government would stick to a limit of 225 nuclear warheads has been rightly welcomed by BASIC (the British American Security Information Council) as a next step in transparency and disarmament.

Mary Riddell references BASIC in her commentary. Read more:

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/maryriddell/100041312/recycled-leaders-like-hague-and-ids-are-better-second-time-around/  

NATO ‘Experts Group’ misses an opportunity for leadership on nuclear posture

BASIC and Arms Control Association Press Release

(London/Berlin/Washington, D.C./New York) — U.S. and European nuclear arms control and security experts reacted to the elements of a report from a group of senior advisors on reform of NATO\’s basic mission statement describing recommendations on Alliance nuclear policy as a missed opportunity to look forward and take the chance to mould the future of the Alliance.

Now is the time for action on tactical nuclear weapons: non-governmental organization statement

Letter of May 14, 2010 at the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference (signatories listed below):

As the United States and Russia negotiate reductions in their arsenals of strategic nuclear weapons, the world is at an historic moment that provides unique opportunities to withdraw from deployment, reduce and eliminate the particularly destabilising class of short-range nuclear weapons variously described as non-strategic, sub-strategic, tactical or battlefield weapons.