Digests and Blog

By Daryl G. Kimball On Monday June 3, leaders from dozens of states will gather at the United Nations in New York to sign the new Arms Trade Treaty (ATT). The ATT will—for the first time— establish common international standards that must be met before states authorize transfers of conventional weapons or export ammunition and weapons parts and components.Over time, the ATT can help tip the scales in favor human rights and human security when states consider arms transfers. As Secretary of State John Kerry said April 2: "It will help reduce the risk that international transfers of…

By Timothy Farnsworth In recent years, cyber attacks and the threats they pose have grown in sophistication, from low-level disruption and data theft—which are still a majority of cyber attacks—to high-level espionage and destruction. Stuxnet, a piece of malware believed to be responsible for destroying approximately 1,000 centrifuges in Iran's Natanz nuclear facility in late 2009 and early 2010, was a game-changer. For the first time, a computer virus was used to destroy a piece of physical infrastructure and the world took notice. The power of such a capability is clear today, but what…

In Warsaw, the WMD interdiction initiative is getting a second look, and hopefully a second wind. By Ian Williams (Image Source: Singapore Customs Authority) May 31st marks the 10th anniversary of the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI), a non-binding international effort to stop the trafficking of weapons of mass destruction and related materials. Member states are currently holding their first PSI High Level Political meeting in five years. The May 27-29 meeting is a critical opportunity for the Obama administration to take action on its pledge from the 2010 National Security…

By Kelsey Davenport, Daryl G. Kimball, and Greg Thielmann The International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) May 2013 quarterly report on Iran's nuclear program indicates that Tehran is continuing to move forward on its nuclear program, installing more advanced centrifuges and building-up its stockpiles of uranium enriched to 3.5 percent and 20 percent, and moving forward on construction of its heavy water reactor at Arak. The report findings underscore the urgent need to intensify negotiations with Tehran to resolve the political questions surrounding Iran's nuclear program and to resolve the…

Ohio class ballistic missile submarine USS West Virginia (SSBN 736) transits the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway as it returns to Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, Ga. from a patrol mission. (U.S. Navy photo Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Kimberly Clifford/Released) By Tom Z. Collina In these days of high-stakes budget battles on Capitol Hill, it is typical for budget managers to point at someone else's program as the problem. But when everyone starts pointing at the same program, you know it's in trouble. And everyone—including the Navy—seems to be pointing their fingers at the Navy's…

The Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) announced on April 23 that its International Monitoring System (IMS) detected radioactive isotopes consistent with the February 12North Korean nuclear test and announced the discovery on April 23, 2013. The radionuclide station in Takasaki, Japan detected xenon-131m and xenon-133, two radioactive isotopes that are associated with nuclear fission. The gases detected by the Takasaki station, located approximately 620 miles from the North Korean test site, were produced by a nuclear fission event that occurred at least 50 days before…

At an April 11 event hosted by the Arms Control Association, Senator Jeanne Shaheen and Lt. Gen. Frank Klotz (USAF, ret.) urged U.S. ratification of the CTBT. Shaheen noted that ratification of the CTBT will require a great deal of preparation, "But that just means we should start now to chart a path forward for its eventual consideration." Klotz reiterated his support for the CTBT, saying "the logic for moving forward and ahead on ratification of the CTBT is inescapable." He went on to say that the United States already abides by the requirements of the treaty and is unlikely to resume…

Senator Tom Udall of New Mexico and a bipartisan group of senators reintroduced the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RESA) Amendments of 2013 on Friday, April 19. Representative Ray Lujan of New Mexico introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives the same day. This legislation would go beyond previous bills by extending compensation to uranium workers who were employed after December 31, 1971. It also makes all claimants eligible for medical benefits and the maximum compensation of $150,000, and funds an epidemiological study of the health effects of uranium workers…

Christine Wing, a Senior Research Fellow at the Center on International Cooperation at New York University, sat down with the CTBTO to discuss her experience working on nuclear disarmament during the Cold War and how civil society can advance the cause of disarmament today, and particularly how it can help achieve the entry into force of the CTBT. Wing stressed the importance of the CTBT's entry into force in stemming proliferation. She stated that a legal ban on nuclear testing would not only prevent horizontal proliferation-the development of nuclear weapons by non-nuclear states-but…

U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel speaks with reporters about Syria during a press conference in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates on Thursday, April 25, 2013. (Image source: AP) By Daryl G. Kimball, Greg Thielmann, and Kelsey Davenport The U.S. intelligence community "assesses with varying degrees of confidence, that the Syrian regime has used chemical weapons on a small scale in Syria, specifically, the chemical agent sarin," according to information released by the White House on April 25 in a letter to Senators Levin and McCain. The U.S. allegations follow letters written to the UN…