The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review conference concluded at the end of May on a positive note. However, the months ahead look uncertain. Diplomatic relations over the North Korean and Iranian programs continue to deteriorate, and there still lacks a firm indication on whether the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) will be ratified by the end of the year.
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June 2010
June was a busy month as BASIC’s Executive Director toured Europe to discuss nuclear disarmament in the aftermath of the Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference.
All’s fair in cuts and war
Film director and actor Terry Jones references BASIC in his commentary on the Trident nuclear weapon system and Britain's defense budget.
Read the full article:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jun/26/defence-spending-cuts
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
SNAP ANALYSIS – Can Middle East WMD-free zone talks happen?
“The decision to convene a conference in two years time to move towards a Middle East zone free of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction is a major achievement, after 15 years of inaction,”
BASIC Progam Director Anne Penketh quoted by Reuters.
Read the full article: http://in.reuters.com/article/idINIndia-48899220100529
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.
Nuke Conference Achieves Deal; US May Backtrack on Mideast Conference
“The Review Conference snatched victory from the jaws of defeat.” said BASIC Program Director Anne Penketh, quoted in The Huffington Post.
Read more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/evelyn-leopold/dispute-over-israeli-arms_b_592898.html
NPT Review Conference ends with adoption of consensus Final Document
There was a rare and powerful burst of euphoria at the UN on the final day of the NPT Review Conference, when the representatives of about 180 states agreed on a final document without a vote.