Viewpoint by Tomohiko Aishima The writer is the Executive Director of Peace and Global Issues, Soka Gakkai International TOKYO (IDN) — While the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference held this past summer failed to adopt a final document, the fact that the conference saw a repeated debate on reducing the risk of nuclear weapon […]
Ukraine: The Russian Nuke Threat
Viewpoint by Sergio Duarte The writer is a former High Representative of the United Nations for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA), and President of Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs. NEW YORK (IDN) — The conflict between Russia and Ukraine, described by Moscow as a “special military operation”, entered its eighth month without an end in […]
Arms Control at Near-Standstill as Nuclear Threats Escalate
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — Amid growing nuclear threats from Russia and North Korea, the United Nations commemorated Disarmament Week beginning October 24, warning that weapons of mass destruction, in particular nuclear weapons, continue to be of primary concern, owing to their destructive power and the threat that they pose to humanity. But […]
U.S. Sends Mixed Signals About the Use of Nuclear Weapons
By Daryl G. Kimball The writer has served as the executive director of the Arms Control Association since 2001 and has been a leading nongovernmental advocate for nuclear threat reduction and disarmament since 1989. In November 2021, he was invited to brief the Pentagon’s NPR Working Group. The following was published as Arms Control Association […]
What If Russia Unleashes a Less Deadly Weapon on Ukraine?
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — Russia’s military setbacks in Ukraine have triggered widespread speculation in the US that Russian President Vladimir Putin may unleash his stockpile of “tactical nuclear weapons”, which may be less devastating than the deadly US weapons that destroyed the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki back in August 1945. […]
The Era of Nuclear Blackmail Must End
By Thalif Deen* UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — When the United Nations commemorated the annual International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons on September 26, the President of the General Assembly (GA) Csaba Kőrösi reminded delegates of the statue of Saint Agnes—”found in the ruins of Nagasaki, charred and mottled from the atomic blast”—and […]
Exhibition Educates Youth on Dangers of Nuclear Weapons
By Kalinga Seneviratne NUR-SULTAN, Kazakhstan (IDN) — An exhibition that opened at Keruen Mall, an upmarket shopping centre here on September 16 and continues until the end of the month, uses a novel method to reach out to young people with the message of the dangers of nuclear weapons. The exhibition depicts over 70 years […]
US Warns Russia Against Use of Chemical and Biological Weapons in Ukraine
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — The retreat of Russian troops from occupied territory in Ukraine has led to widespread speculation that Moscow may use non-conventional weapons, primarily biological and chemical weapons, to beat back the Ukrainians. In a prime-time interview on US television on September 19, US President Joe Biden said the US […]
UN Review Conference on the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Declared a Failure
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — The alarm bells have been ringing right across Europe as the Russian invasion of Ukraine has not only triggered nuclear threats by one of the world’s major nuclear powers but also set off emergency drills outside a nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia which has come under fire. Against […]
US Remains Restrained Over North Korea’s Missile Tests & Nuclear Threats
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — The US response to North Korea’s continued missile tests—and occasional nuclear threats—has been surprisingly restrained. The reaction has been summed up in two words: dialogue and diplomacy. On August 17, North Korea fired two cruise missiles toward the sea off its west coast. And, according to a report […]