Tuesday will be the 20th anniversary of the announcements made by U.S. and Russian Presidents Clinton and Yeltsin that the two countries agreed to detarget their nuclear weapons so that none would be aimed at the other nation.
Strategic Stability
Nuclear Diplomacy in 2014
Looking ahead to this coming year, 2014 is full of opportunities for reducing the value of nuclear weapons and developing arms control in ways that could improve security relations. Enough time remains before policymakers and analysts start talking about how we must focus on “managing expectations” for the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference in the spring of 2015.
NATO ministers meeting should consider security costs of a nuclear defence
Foreign ministers of the North Atlantic Council will meet on Tuesday and Wednesday in Brussels this week. Chaired by NATO Secretary General, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, this meeting will likely begin preparations for the 2014 NATO Summit to be held 4-5 September in Newport, South Wales. It is also likely that this week’s meeting will continue the discussions on “Defence Matters”,
TNW, The Quiet Menace: How the Threats to Europe, the Middle East and South Asia are Linked
London’s International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS; what – you haven’t applied for membership yet?) recently published their annual review of world affairs, Strategic Survey 2013. In its chapter on strategic policy issues, the Survey covers an important topic, the complex nuclear arms race underway in South Asia among India, Pakistan and China.
Reducing the Role of Tactical Nuclear Weapons in Europe: Joint Project
BASIC and the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP) run a joint project on reducing the role of tactical nuclear weapons in Europe, supported by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.
Gambling with our security?
Our calculations about risk are not always rational. Many people are more afraid of a shark attack or plane crash than they are about driving a car or crossing the street. Statistically, the latter two are far more dangerous but, somehow, the familiarity of driving and a sense of control make the risks feel lower.
Russia’s Multi-vector Nuclear Policy: a Hindrance to Disarmament
Today, Russia and the US possess approximately 95% of the world’s nuclear weapons, and bilateral nuclear relations between these two countries still constitute one of the main issues in global nuclear disarmament.
Multilateral cooperation on non-proliferation & regional security
This week we will witness several examples of multilateral cooperation on non-proliferation and regional security. Beginning today, it was reported that representatives from Middle East states are convening in Switzerland at a meeting organized by Finnish Ambassador Jaakko Laajava, the facilitator of the official conference to establish a zone free of nuclear and WMD in the Middle East.