By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — The growing nuclear threats from Russia—the last one from President Vladimir Putin himself—have resulted in a negative fallout for a landmark treaty between two of the world’s major nuclear powers. The Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START 1) between the US and the then Soviet Union—on the reduction and […]
Russia Urged to Comply with New START Inspections
By Arms Control Association (ACA) WASHINGTON DC (IDN) — Experts from the Arms Control Association called upon Russia to comply with its obligations to allow for on-site inspections to verify compliance with the 2010 New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) and to engage in further nuclear disarmament diplomacy with the United States.
South Korea Vows to Go Nuclear Amid Growing Threats from North
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — As nuclear tensions continue to spread across the Korean Peninsula, South Korea has for the first time declared “nuclear weapons as a policy option”,—triggering the threat of a potentially new nuclear power looming in the horizon. South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol is quoted as saying that if […]
South Korea Warned Against Talk of Pursuing Nuclear Weapons
By J C Suresh TORONTO | WASHINGTON (IDN) — A former U.S. official has cautioned South Korea against talk of pursuing nuclear weapons. Mr Thomas Countryman, who served as the acting Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security until January 2017, was responding to remarks by South Korea’s president Yoon Suk Yeol.
Iranian Drones Include US & Western Components
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — The United States has continued to accuse Russia of using scores of Iranian-made drones in its 11-month-old conflict with Ukraine. But in an ironic twist, the Biden administration is now investigating widespread reports that Iranian drones include American and Western components— despite longstanding economic and military sanctions against […]
The Decline & Fall of Nuclear Disarmament in 2022
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — As a politically and militarily tense 2022 came to an inglorious end, nuclear threats kept hitting the front pages of newspapers with monotonous regularity last year. The rising tensions were triggered primarily by threats from Russia, the continuous military rhetoric spilling out of North Korea and Iran’s unwillingness […]
UN Takes to New Ways to Promote Nuclear Disarmament
By Jaya Ramachandran GENEVA (IDN) — UN Secretary-General António Guterres announced on 24 May 2018 his Agenda for Disarmament, which outlines a set of practical measures across the entire range of disarmament issues, including weapons of mass destruction, conventional arms and future weapon technologies. Action 1 for “Securing Our Common Future,” the title of the […]
No Nuclear Weapon Can Save Iran from its Internal Strife
Viewpoint by Dr Alon Ben-Meir Dr Alon Ben-Meir, a retired professor of international relations at the Center for Global Affairs at New York University (NYU), taught courses on international negotiation and Middle Eastern studies for over 20 years. NEW YORK (IDN) — Words from various officials in the know suggest that, although President Biden stated […]
Is the Iran Nuclear Deal Dead or Alive?
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — U.S. President Joe Biden’s off-the-cuff remark, describing the nuclear deal with Iran as “dead”, has led to widespread speculation about the future of the landmark agreement—and of the potential emergence of new nuclear powers in the horizon. “It is dead, but we’re not going to announce it,” Biden […]
The Dismal State of Nuclear Disarmament
Viewpoint by Jacqueline Cabasso The writer is the Executive Director of the Western States Legal Foundation. OAKLAND, California (IDN) — The year 2022 has been a nightmare for nuclear disarmament. The year started out with a mildly reassuring Joint Statement by the five original nuclear-armed states, issued on January 3, 2022, declaring: