Viewpoint by John Scales Avery* The writer is a theoretical chemist noted for his research publications in quantum chemistry. COPENHAGEN (IDN) – Public health experts say that if the COVID-19 epidemic is not successfully contained, it could become a global pandemic, perhaps spreading to 80% of the world’s population. With a 1% mortality rate, this […]
Postpone the NPT Review Conference to 2021 and Convene in Vienna
Viewpoint by Tariq Rauf The writer has attended all nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) meetings since 1987 as a delegate, including as senior adviser to the chair of Main Committee I (nuclear disarmament) in 2015 and to the chair of the 2014 preparatory committee; as alternate head of the International Atomic Energy Agency delegation to the […]
New ACP Chief to Enhance the 79-Nation Group’s Effectiveness at the UN
By Georges Rebelo Pinto Chikoti, ACP Secretary General The following are extensive excerpts from the inaugural address of Georges Rebelo Pinto Chikoti, Secretary General of the 79-nation ACP Group of States to the Special Meeting of the ACP Committee of Ambassadors on 2 March 2020 at the ACP House in Brussels. Angola’s Minister of Foreign […]
Russian Govt Prohibits ‘Only Illegal’ NGO Activities
By Kester Kenn Klomegah MOSCOW (IDN) – President Vladimir Putin maintains that Russia does not prohibit the activities of civil society and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) as long as these abide by the country’s laws, refrain from meddling in internal politics and inciting extremism and civil disobedience in the country. He told Russia’s state-owned TASS News […]
US Prison Conditions Risk Intense Coronavirus Outbreak
By Julia Conley, Staff Writer Common Dreams WASHINGTON. D.C. (IDN) – Prisoners’ rights advocates are warning that the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S. may soon have dire implications for the 2.2 million people living in the American penal system, as prison officials across the country shared little about their plans to keep inmates safe and […]
Our Addiction to Fossil Fuels Can Kill Us
Viewpoint by John Scales Avery* COPENHAGEN (IDN) – The Industrial Revolution marked the start of a massive human use of fossil fuels. The stored energy from several hundred years of plant growth began to be used at roughly a million times the rate at which it had been formed. The effect on human society was […]
Bullish on Trilateral Arms Control and Bearish on New START
By Kingston Reif and Shannon Bugos While Kingston Reif is director for disarmament and threat reduction policy, Shannon Bugos is research assistant at the Arms Control Association. WASHINGTON, D.C. (IDN) – President Donald Trump said recently that he is open to meeting with the other heads of state of the five permanent members of the […]
Interconnected Dangers to Civilization
Viewpoint by John Scales Avery* COPENHAGEN (IDN) – Cultural evolution depends on the non-genetic storage, transmission, diffusion and utilization of information. The development of human speech, the invention of writing, the development of paper and printing, and finally, in modern times, computers and the Internet: all these have been crucial steps in society’s explosive accumulation […]
Five Nuclear Weapon States Pledge Commitment to NPT
By J C Suresh WASHINGTON, DC (IDN) — Five permanent members (P5) of the UN Security Council – USA, China, France, Russia and Britain – who together possess an overwhelming majority of 13,865 nuclear weapons have pledged “unstinting commitment to preserving and deepening … for future generations” the legacy of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation […]
Veteran Mental Health Charity Leaves Thousands at Risk
By J W Jackie RENO, Nevada, USA (IDN) – A UK-based mental health charity that provides treatment to around 2,000 military veterans every year has announced that it will no longer be accepting new referrals. Combat Stress has helped veterans for more than 100 years but says that a lack of funding means that they […]