For Immediate Release: May 28, 2024

Media Contacts: Daryl G. Kimball, executive director, 202-463-8270 ext. 107; Tony Fleming, director for communications, 202-463-8270 ext. 110.

(Washington, D.C.)—UN Secretary-General António Guterres, the House Armed Services Committee chair John Garamendi (D-Calif.), and the senior director for arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament for the National Security Council will deliver keynote remarks at this year's annual conference of the Arms Control Association, “Moving Back from the Nuclear Brink,” on Friday, June 7 at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.

Expert panels will also address critical national and international security issues including:

• the debate over the rising costs of the $1.5 trillion U.S. nuclear weapons modernization program and proposals to increase the size of the already massive U.S. nuclear arsenal in the years ahead. Panelists include the nuclear weapons expert Hans Kristensen, the chair of the Congressional Commission on the U.S. Strategic Posture, Madelyn Creedon, and W.J. Hennigan of The New York Times

• the Biden administration’s failure to enforce its own arms transfer policies and U.S. law as it supplies weapons being used by Israel in its assault on Gaza. Panelists include a senior State Department official and independent civilian protection and arms transfers experts.

• options to curtail Iran’s sensitive nuclear activities and the nonproliferation implications of a deal for nuclear cooperation between the United States and Saudi Arabia, which has threatened to pursue nuclear weapons if Iran does.

Secretary-General Guterres will deliver special remarks via video in the morning. In recent weeks, Mr. Guterres has warned about a resurgence of nuclear threats, noting that: "The nuclear risk is higher than at any moment since the depths of the Cold War … And the vital norms and standards against the proliferation, testing, and use of nuclear weapons are being eroded.”

Rep. Garamendi will open the June 7 conference live via video with a keynote address focusing on cost-effective alternatives to the U.S. nuclear modernization program, including the troubled Sentinel ICBM program, and why President Biden needs to redouble his efforts to engage Russia and China in talks on nuclear risk reduction and arms control.

“Since 2014, the U.S. has spent $570 billion in taxpayer dollars on nuclear weapons and is slated to spend an additional $756 billion by 2032. [T]he House Armed Services Committee had the rare opportunity to rein in this wasteful spending, but Republicans refused to provide necessary oversight,” Garamendi said after the committee considered the National Defense Authorization Act, last week.

Pranay Vaddi, Special Assistant to President Biden and Senior Director for Arms Control, Disarmament, and Nonproliferation at the National Security Council will deliver remarks on "Adapting the U.S. Approach to Arms Control and Nonproliferation to a New Era.” He is expected to provide an update on the administration’s efforts and plans since National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s proposals on nuclear deterrence and arms control with Russia and China that were unveiled in his speech at the 2023 ACA Annual Meeting.

The nonpartisan Arms Control Association promotes effective arms control policies and supports international efforts to reduce and eliminate the threats posed by the world’s most dangerous weapons. The organization has been at the forefront of efforts to promote nuclear arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament for more than 50 years.

The June 7 event will run from 9:00 am to 4:30 pm EDT.  The full list of speakers and the registration details for the event, which is open to the public, are available through the Arms Control Association's website.

Members of the press may request complimentary registration. 

The 2024 Arms Control Association Annual Meeting will be webcast from the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Friday, June 7. You can view the webcast live below or on our official Youtube channel.

If you have any questions about the webcast, please contact Tony Fleming, director for communications and operations, at [email protected].

Our organization is dedicated not only to advancing effective measures to reduce and eliminate the enormous dangers posed by nuclear weapons. We also work to support efforts to address the toxic and radioactive legacy of past nuclear weapons testing and production.

From May 17 to 19, a special screening of a new documentary, “First We Bombed New Mexico,” will be available online. It tells the tragic story of the many “downwinders" whose health was adversely affected by the fallout from the July 1945 Trinity nuclear test and their betrayal by the U.S. government. 

In particular, thousands of New Mexicans—mostly Hispanic and Native American—were exposed to catastrophic levels of radioactive fallout, never warned, never acknowledged and never helped afterwards. 

You can easily watch this film on your phone, iPad, laptop, or desktop by registering here.

REGISTER TO WATCH ON YOUR DEVICE

Alongside this special screening is a panel discussion with the filmmakers and a bipartisan group of members of Congress who are fighting to address this wrong. They are pushing legislation to expand and extend the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) to include Trinity downwinders and other communities. 

This is an urgent and timely issue as RECA will expire June 7, 2024, unless these advocates win Congressional approval to extend it.

On March 7, the Senate approved S. 3853, which would extend the RECA program for five years to downwinders in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Guam. It would also expand compensation to several populations who were left out of the original program, including uranium workers and residents living in or near areas contaminated by nuclear weapons production-related activities.

Now, House Speaker Mike Johnson must agree to present the Senate bill to the House floor. If he does, it would likely win overwhelming approval.

Please call House Speaker Mike Johnson's office and tell his staff that you: 

"strongly urge the House to quickly take up and pass the RECA expansion and extension bill, S. 3853, in the interest of public health and justice for those impacted by the government’s past nuclear testing and nuclear weapons production activities.” 

CALL SPEAKER JOHNSON'S OFFICE AT (202) 225-4000.

Thanks for your help and support.