By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS, 29 June 2023 (IDN) — As geopolitics in the militarily-volatile Middle East are undergoing radical changes, including a rapprochement between two former bitter enemies, Iran and Saudi Arabia, the United States is trying to broker a deal described as ground-breaking: diplomatic ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel. But how realistic […]
A Viable Path for Moving Back to Nuclear Arms Control
By Daryl G. Kimball The writer is the Executive Director of the Arms Control Association (ACA). The following text was published in the organization’s monthly journal, Arms Control Today. WASHINGTON, D.C., 28 June 2023 (IDN) — Deteriorating relations between the major nuclear powers have stymied progress on nuclear arms control and disarmament for more than […]
Russia Willing to Discuss Arms Control Proposal with the US
By Shannon Bugos The author is senior policy analyst at the Arms Control Association (ACA). The following text was published in their Nuclear Disarmament Monitor newsletter of 22 June 2023. WASHINGTON, DC, 24 June 2023 (IDN) — Russia expressed a willingness to consider the proposal by U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan in June to […]
Are Nuclear Talks with Iran Underway Again?
By Kelsey Davenport The author is Director for Nonproliferation Policy at the Arms Control Association (ACA). The following text was published in their P4+1 and Iran Nuclear Deal Alert news digest for June 2023. WASHINGTON, DC, 15 June 2023 (IDN) — Recent comments from U.S. and Iranian officials suggest that the space for negotiations over […]
Spending on Nuclear Arms Reaches a Hefty $83 Billion & Rising
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS, 12 June 2023 (IDN) — As geopolitics take a turn for the worse—with Russian nuclear threats in Ukraine, the saber-rattling by North Korea and the increasing political confrontation between the US and China—there are rising investments in the world’s expanding nuclear arsenals. Global spending on nuclear weapons increased in 2022 […]
Universalization of Nuclear Weapon Ban Treaty Is Essential
By Ramesh Jaura BERLIN | TOKYO, 11 June 2023 (IDN) — Peacebuilder and Buddhist leader Daisaku Ikeda, who is president of the Tokyo-based Soka Gakkai International (SGI), issued a statement ahead of the meeting of the Group of 7 (G7) countries in Hiroshima May 19-21, calling on the G7 leaders to take bold steps toward […]
US Mayors Call for Urgent Action to Avoid Nuclear War
By J Nastranis NEW YORK, 5 June 2023 (IDN) — “We are living in a time of extraordinary nuclear dangers, with all the nuclear-armed states qualitatively, and in some cases quantitatively, modernizing their nuclear arsenals”, observes the United States Conference of Mayors (USCM) and calls for “urgent action to avoid nuclear war, resolve the Ukraine […]
Need To Undertake a Comprehensive Study of Nuke-free Zones
Growing importance of NWFZs Viewpoint by Dr. J. Enkhsaikhan The writer is Chairman of Blue Banner NGO and Former Permanent Representative of Mongolia to the United Nations ULAANBAATAR, 5 June 2023 (IDN) — Nuclear-weapon-free zones (NWFZs) are important and practical regional measures of non-nuclear-weapon states (NNWSs) in promoting the goals of nuclear non-proliferation and strengthening […]
A United Civil Society Push for Spain to Join the TPNW
By ICAN GENEVA | MADRID, 31 May 2023 (IDN) — Forty-five civil society organisations in Spain have come together to form a coalition with a single mission: to persuade the Spanish government to adhere to the 2017 Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW). The Alianza por el Desarme Nuclear (Alliance for Nuclear Disarmament), […]
A Nuclear-Free World Begins with Young Leaders
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS, 31 May 2023 (IDN) — The United Nations now believes—and perhaps rightly so—that a world free of nuclear weapons should begin primarily with young future leaders. In pursuing this ambitious goal, the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) and the government of Japan are calling on young people to apply […]