One year ago, on May 28, 2010, the signatory states of the global Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) agreed in New York to convene a 2012 conference on establishing a WMD-free zone in the Middle East (ME).
Non-proliferation treaty (NPT)
A global ban on fissile material?
Ask any diplomat what is happening at the Conference on Disarmament (CD) when a session resumes and the question usually provokes a burst of derisive laughter. The CD session which opens today in Geneva, where attempts to launch negotiations on a Fissile Material Cutoff Treaty (FMCT) remain in the deep freeze, is no exception.
Apocalypse Never
If you have a nuclear addiction, Doctor Tad Daley has the cure. In his book “Apocalypse Never: Forging the Path to a Nuclear Weapon-Free World,” Daley explains the risks from the most dangerous weapons known to man, describes a nightmare scenario of escalating nuclear non-proliferation, and sets out the steps for their abolition. Why? Because, he argues, nuclear weapons are not needed in the modern world.
NATO’s Defense and Deterrence Posture Review: A French Perspective on Nuclear Issues
Paul Zajac reviews the assumptions about the apparent rift between France and Germany over nuclear weapons and NATO, and the extent to which the alliance should play a role in nuclear disarmament. He argues that allies must be careful not to let other initiatives, such as projects on missile defense or aspirations for a world without nuclear weapons, harm alliance unity around nuclear deterrence.
Anniversary of Obama’s Prague speech
Two years ago this Tuesday, President Barack Obama vowed in his Prague speech to improve U.S. relations with the rest of the world and to strengthen international security by striving for a world without nuclear weapons. Since then, President Obama has proceeded with a flurry of nuclear weapons policy-related activities
This Week – Next steps for arms control
It’s a busy week for nuclear non-proliferation advocates. On Thursday, BASIC is hosting a joint briefing with VERTIC (Verification Research, Training and Information Centre) in Washington on the Next Steps after New START with a particular focus on the global nuclear test ban treaty.
January 2011
New START was ratified by the US Senate in December, and then by Russia last week. It is expected that the instruments of ratification will be exchanged to bring it into force by the end of this week, in Munich at the security conference.
Podcast – Paul Ingram with French and Norwegian Ambassadors
Reflecting on the 2010 NPT Review Conference and future prospects, UK Amb John Duncan, for Multilateral Arms Control & Disarmament, interviews Amb Steffan Konstad, Dir Gen for Security Policy, Paul Ingram, BASIC's exectutive director, and Amb Eric Danon, French delegation leader to the NPT in 2010. The recording was made at Wilton Park in December 2010 and is shown on on the FCO website.
Select John Duncan's first podcast from: http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/about-us/what-we-do/fco-websites/podcasts/