“In the last few weeks, watching the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearings on New START unfold, I have sometimes felt like shouting out 'Senators, get a world view,' because in the minutiae of 18 public hearings, the bigger picture has been lost.”
Excerpt from article by BASIC Program Director Anne Penketh, written for The Hill's Congress Blog.
Read the full article:
The reasons for the impasse over Iran's nuclear program go beyond current debates on nuclear non-proliferation, sanctions, and threats of military action. This paper reviews the causes of the impasse from a broader perspective and also surveys the motives of Brazil and Turkey to engage in the diplomacy surrounding Iran's nuclear program.
The growing threat from nuclear weapons has revived the idea of their complete elimination. BASIC has been monitoring the various important developments as the world moves closer to getting to zero nuclear weapons.
“There's no real indication of the deep shifts in thinking necessary to begin giving up the nuclear fix.”
BASIC Executive Director Paul Ingram quoted by Spiegel Online. Read more:
http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,687640,00.html
“In the end, we are only going to achieve resolution if the broader picture is brought in to play. There isn't really going to be a resolution if there is an attempt is made to limit to Iran's nuclear programme itself.”
BASIC Executive Director Paul Ingram quoted in Zawya. Read more:
This BASIC Backgrounder covers the essential developments in the Senate ratification hearings for the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) between the United States and Russia on reductions to their deployed long-range nuclear weapons arsenal.
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.