Digests and Blog

By Tom Collina The Arms Control Association often finds itself at odds with Senate Republican Minority Whip Jon Kyl (Ariz.). After all, Sen. Kyl led opposition to the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty in 1999 and to New START last year, both of which ACA strongly supports. Even so, ACA prides itself on cultivating a civil, fact-based debate on policy issues, and we expect the same of others. We were thus disappointed to read Sen. Kyl's Jan. 31, 2011 floor speech in which he mischaracterized ACA's position. In his prepared remarks, Sen. Kyl stated that the Senate's Resolution of Ratification,…

Source: PBS Newshour By Tom Z. Collina New START is reaching the finish line. After three votes in Russia's lower house of parliament, or Duma, Russia's upper house, the Federation Council, gave unanimous final approval today. The U.S. Senate approved New START on Dec. 22. The only thing still standing in the way of the treaty's entry-into-force is the exchange of official documents, called "instruments of ratification" between Presidents Obama and Medvedev. This could happen in a matter of days. Inspections could resume by April Once the treaty is in force, the two sides have 45 days…

Image Source: White House By Rob Golan-Vilella Last night, President Barack Obama delivered his annual State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress. As expected, the speech focused heavily on domestic and economic policy. With unemployment still over 9% and the national discussion still largely overshadowed by the fallout from the recent shootings in Tucson, it was unsurprising that foreign policy issues received little mention. Most of the comparatively brief section on foreign policy was devoted to terrorism and America's ongoing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Still, Obama…

Tonight's State of the Union address is expected to focus mainly on domestic and economic topics. However, those looking to learn more about the state of arms control in the U.S. and abroad need look no further than this month's Arms Control Today. The January/February edition includes forward-looking policy-focused articles from: ? Bill Richardson With his three co-authors, Richardson-the former New Mexico governor, U.S. energy secretary, and ambassador to the UN-identifies important benchmarks for the U.S. as officials prepare for the 2012 nuclear security summit. ? Bonnie Jenkins The…

By Alfred Nurja The Arms Control Association has just put up the full transcript from our January 20 event entitled "Toward a Negotiated Solution," part of ACA's "Solving the Iranian Nuclear Puzzle" Briefing Series. The ACA's upcoming Iran briefing on "Impact and Limitation of Sanctions on Iran's Nuclear Choices" will take place in early March. To read the full transcript please click here.

By Rob Golan-Vilella As Chinese President Hu Jintao visits Washington this week, the United States and China have reached an agreement that will improve nuclear security in China. The NNSA announced yesterday that the two nations have signed a memorandum of understanding that will establish a nuclear security "Center of Excellence" in China. According to the NNSA: The Center will serve as a forum for exchanging technical information, sharing best practices, developing training courses, and promoting technical collaborations that will enhance nuclear security in China and throughout Asia. This…

By Alfred Nurja The Arms Control Association hosted a briefing today on Iran's nuclear program entitled "Toward a Negotiated Solution," part of ACA's "Solving the Iranian Nuclear Puzzle" Briefing Series. The session focused on examining what a viable diplomatic solution to the Iranian nuclear issue would look like and ways to achieve it. This was the second of four briefings designed to analyze the threat posed by the Iranian nuclear program and explore ways to deal with it. A full transcript of the session will be available early next week. The following highlights are based on my notes:…

The permanent members of the Security Council plus Germany and Iran are scheduled to hold a second round of discussions over Iran's nuclear program on Jan. 21-22 in Istanbul. This second round of talks comes in the wake of increased reports that a combination of sanctions and technological set-backs have slowed down the Iranian nuclear program buying more time for negotiations. As a tool for providing leverage these measures may have improved the international community's negotiating position but all these reports have provided little new light on the outlines of a negotiated agreement that…

Today, the staff at the Arms Control Association are delighted and honored to announce that the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation have named us a recipient of the 2010 MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions, the "genius" award for exceptional institutions. According to the Foundation, award winners "are highly creative and effective organizations that have made a remarkable impact in their fields, driving significant change on modest budgets." "The award recognizes institutions around the globe that are leaders on critical issues and challenges. We are very proud…

December was an exciting month for arms control news, led by the Senate's approval of New START. For insight on the stories you've heard, as well as a few you haven't, check out the newly released January/February edition of Arms Control Today: Tom Z. Collina captures the dramatic twists and turns in the weeks and days leading up to the Senate's December 22 vote to approve the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty. After years of stalemate, the International Atomic Energy Agency Board of Governors gave the green light for a plan to set up a nuclear fuel bank under IAEA control. Daniel Horner…