Digests and Blog

  A newly released Pentagon report reveals unsettling moves by China to expand its nuclear weapons program, including the development of new types of nuclear-capable missiles. These new weapons systems have largely slipped under the radar as North Korean and Russian nuclear weapons programs continue to grab headlines. However, these developments threaten to further destabilize a shaky global nuclear order, highlighting the critical need for engagement with China. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, China’s nuclear arsenal—now an estimated 280 warheads—has…

Democrats and Republicans were looking for details about the U.S. strategy toward North Korea at the July 25 Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, but they left with little new information – underscoring the disconnect between the executive and legislative branches on this critical foreign policy challenge. While it is not Congress’s job to negotiate with Pyongyang, the Trump administration’s failure to communicate and articulate a clear strategy could lead Congress to take steps that inadvertently impede the negotiations down the road.Senators’…

These remarks were delivered on August 2 in Hiroshima at the International Conference Against A & H Bombs to an international audience of nuclear disarmament activists and government representatives. On the 73rd anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima, the global nuclear disarmament enterprise is in a state of crisis. Nearly 50 years after the adoption of the nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT), the five states that signed as nuclear weapon states have failed to give up their weapons. Dramatic nuclear reductions have brought global nuclear weapons arsenals down from 60,000 nuclear…

Trump Escalates Rhetoric on Iran Rhetoric escalated between the United States and Iran when U.S. President Donald Trump irresponsibly tweeted July 22 that Iranian President Hassan Rouhani must “NEVER EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN” or else suffer consequences the likes of which “FEW HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE.” In response to Trump’s threat, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif tweeted July 23 that Iran is “UNIMPRESSED” by the bluster and ended his message with the warning “BE CAUTIOUS.” The Trump tweet was likely prompted by Rouhani warning July 22 that the United States should know…

This op-ed was originally published on TomDispatch.com on July 24, 2018. The pundits and politicians generally take it for granted that President Trump lacks a coherent foreign policy. They believe that he acts solely out of spite, caprice, and political opportunism—lashing out at U.S. allies like Germany’s Angela Merkel and England’s Theresa May only to embrace authoritarian rulers like Russia’s Vladimir Putin and North Korea’s Kim Jong-un. His instinctive rancor and impulsiveness seemed on full display during his recent trip to Europe, where he lambasted Merkel, undercut May, and then, in…

July 1 marked the 50th anniversary of the nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT) opening for signature. With near-universal membership, the NPT is widely recognized as one of the most successful treaties to date and the cornerstone of nonproliferation and disarmament efforts, but ensuring that it remains so for the next 50 years should not be taken for granted.The NPT is built on three pillars—nonproliferation, disarmament, and the peaceful use of nuclear energy—and a bargain: non-nuclear states agreed to not seek out nuclear weapons of their own in exchange for the existing nuclear states to…

UN Secretary-General Calls for JCPOA Implementation UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the nuclear deal with Iran is at a “crossroads” and expressed his deep regret over U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the agreement and reimpose sanctions.Guterres also called upon all states to support the nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), saying “it is important that the withdrawal of one country not impede the ability of others to fully implement their commitments under the [JCPOA] or to engage in activities consistent with resolution 2231…

Dr. Lassina Zerbo, the Executive Secretary of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), was the keynote at an American Association for the Advancement of Science and the Arms Control Association cosponsored event on June 14, 2018 to discuss the role of technology in North Korean disarmament. Following his opening remarks, Dr. Zerbo and an accompanying panel of experts engaged in a discussion on how the scientific community and international organizations can work together to advance individual and collective goals, particularly as they relate to verifying the dismantlement of a…

A new survey shows that 20 years after the opening for signature of the CTBT, the majority of Americans still support the test ban. This latest survey joins many other polls that have found high American support for the CTBT over the past six decades.This chart, pulled from data from the 2016 poll by Herzog and Baron, was in response to the following question: “Should the US Senate approve a treaty with 164 other countries that would prohibit nuclear weapon test explosions worldwide?”Working with the polling firm YouGov, Stephen Herzog and Jonathan Baron, both Ph.D candidates at Yale…

 The joint statement from the historic June 12 Singapore summit meeting between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump stated that North Korea will “work toward the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula” and the two countries “commit to hold follow-on negotiations.” Assessing whether the summit was a success or a failure will depend in large part on what the follow-on talks accomplish and if the process leads to concrete steps by North Korea to halt and roll back its nuclear weapons program. The indication in the summit document that the United States and…