The Global Security Institute was pleased to provide analysis of the recently-signed nuclear arms agreement between the US and Russia during an interview with Voice of America Radio, which reaches a global audience.
To listen to a brief audio clip, please visit the Voice of America website at:
The Bush-Putin Moscow Treaty, signed May 24, represents a step forward, but also a missed opportunity. The agreement does not include adequate verification measures, and does not address the approximately 10,000 Russian tactical warheads. Moreover, none of the cuts are irreversible, and the US will continue to posses in excess of 14,000 undeployed warheads. In essence, the agreement merely changes the posture of the arsenals without meaningfully eliminating any weapons. The treaty does little to safeguard nuclear materials, or to address the risks of nuclear terrorism that we continue to face.
There are several unsettling issues before us. The US Nuclear Posture Review, parts of which were made public in March, undercuts the commitments of 187 countries to work for the elimination of nuclear weapons under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The Posture review threatens to destroy the non-proliferation regime by promoting the indefinite retention of nuclear weapons and by seeking to make nuclear weapons more usable–even advocating the development of new nuclear weapons. And after the defeat of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty in the US Senate there is a real danger that nuclear testing will resume, putting further strain on the nuclear weapon non-proliferation regime. Additionally as the US unilaterally pushes forward with space weapons and missile defenses, multilateral relations and security are jeopardized.
Posted by zack_allen at 11:29 AM
May 10, 2002
GSI Supports and Informs Delegates at United Nations Nuclear Conference
Jane Goodall Presents First Alan Cranston Peace Award to Jayantha Dhanapala
During the two weeks of the Preparatory Committee (April 8-19, 2002) for the upcoming 2005 Review of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty*, the Global Security Institute held several events at the United Nations for delegates, non-governmental organizations and the public.
GSI, along with other non-governmental organizations, made an important impact on the discussions that took place among delegates. In expressing government representatives gratitude for the work of NGOs and the solid, up-to-date information they offered throughout the PrepCom, Amb. Christopher Westdal of Canada said Of course, I am very impressed with the work of the Global Security Institutes Middle Powers Initiative and many other NGOs. I challenge the delegations here to produce the kind of professional and consistent work these NGOs have presented.
Middle Powers Initiative Events
Following the opening session, the Middle Powers Initiative – a program of the GSI – hosted a public event: Nuclear Weapons and Human Security: Ending the Conflict. The event was attended by a majority of representatives of the 187 States present and served to remind the delegates of the larger human security context of nuclear weapons negotiations. Presentations featured UN Under-Secretary-General for Disarmament Affairs Jayantha Dhanapala; PrepCom Chairman, Ambassador Henrik Salander of Sweden; Senator Douglas Roche of Canada, Chairman of the Middle Powers Initiative; and Rev. Dr. Joan Brown Campbell, Director of the Chautauqua Institutions Department of Religion.
Amb. Dhanapala said, We must delegitimize all weapons of mass destruction. The only way we can make sure they dont reach the hands of terrorists is to get rid of them entirely. After acknowledging the important role GSI and MPI played in the 2000 NPT Review, Amb. Salander said, The work of NGOs, and not least that of MPI, are invaluable during this process. States parties owe you a great debt of gratitude for that.
Rev. Dr. Campbell emphasized moral accountability, saying We are all of one household. Neighbor is not a geographic term, but a moral term. The moral argument against the use of nuclear weapons is rooted in the understanding of the ecumenical. We all drink from the same well. We dare not delude ourselves that first strike would poison only the well of the other. Nuclear poison turns the water in the well of life into blood and poison for all who drink from that well.
Following this event, the Middle Powers Initiative held one a Strategy Consultation, one of a series it has held over the past few years to help strengthen the NPT. Approximately 50 delegates and members of civil society discussed the state of the NPT with a view to practical and immediate steps in which progress could be obtained.
Roald Sadgeev, Professor of Physics at the University of Maryland College Park, and arms control and space advisor to Mikhail Gorbachev spoke about linking unilateral measures to treaty processes. Rose Gottemoeller, former member of the White House National Security Council, spoke regarding fissile materials. Amb. Christopher Westdal of Canada spoke on the need for standardized reporting. Following the formal presentations, the group engaged in constructive discussion and made concluding recommendations. For a detailed report, visit www.gsinstitute.org.
*The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty undergoes a formal review every 5 years by the 187 countries that have ratified it. Each intervening year, Preparatory Committees are convened to prepare for the formal review.
Alan Cranston Peace Award
On April 16 GSI presented the first Alan Cranston Peace Award to UN Under-Secretary-General for Disarmament Affairs Jayantha Dhanapala for his tireless work for disarmament. The Award honors leaders who work for Senator Cranstons vision of a world free from the threats posed by nuclear weapons. Kim Cranston said we are the first generation with the capacity to make itself extinct through a nuclear holocaust. He stressed that the Award honors those who recognize the urgency of this challenge and sieze opportunities we have now.
In keeping with GSIs strategy to promote disarmament as a part of human security, GSI took the opportunity during the Award presentation to create awareness about the important links between disarmament and environmental issues. Asst. Secretary-General Gillian Sorensen, in introducing the Award presenter Dr. Jane Goodall, announced that Dr. Goodall had only a few hours before been named a UN Messenger of Peace by the UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Dr. Goodall then presented the Award, speaking of the connections between her work for the environmental and the need to eliminate nuclear weapons. Dr. Goodall said, Above all, Alan Cranston dedicated himself to the cause of peace and to the environment. He felt that his work on the environment was the longest lasting, and he saw working on nuclear weapons as the greatest environmental issue. Alan said that when you preserve a wild river or a wilderness or a national park, that is forever. By working to eliminate nuclear weapons, Senator Cranston and Jayantha Dhanapala have both worked to preserve all wild rivers, all wildernesses, and all humanity forever.
At the public ceremony Amb. Dhanapala delivered a substantive keynote analysis of how we must make progress in nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament. Disarmament is preeminently a humanitarian endeavour for the protection of the human rights of people and their survival, Dhanapala said. We have to see the campaign for nuclear disarmament as analogous to the campaigns such as those against slavery, for gender equality and for the abolition of child labour. It will be a hard, uphill struggle, but eventually, we shall overcome.
In a private reception later that evening, Sen. Douglas Roche, Dr. Jane Goodall and Jonathan Granoff honored Amb. Dhanapala. GSI was privelaged to host UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan at the intimate reception where he honored the recipient of the Award, the latest Messenger of Peace, and the Global Security Institute with his supportive presence.
GSI took important steps in keeping with its goals to target key opinion leaders and policy makers. The feedback from Ambassadors on the impact of the work of our Middle Powers Initiative reinforced our conviction that GSIs civil diplomacy efforts have a unique value in emphasizing a global perspective that must be included in the negotiation process. GSI distributed more than 2,000 briefs, scholary journals, analytic papers and reports to government representatives and NGO participants. The GSI/MPI delegation of more than 30 experts had numerous informal discussions with key diplomats and decision-makers. It is clear from the participation of high-level diplomats and policy-makers that GSI is recognized as a leader in the disarmament movement and has earned the goodwill of leaders at the highest levels influence.
Posted by zack_allen at 01:26 PM
May 08, 2002
As America Spurns Another Treaty
To the Editor:
Re “U.S. Rejects All Support for New Court on Atrocities” (news article, May 7): The Bush administration’s repudiation of the International Criminal Court is a grave disappointment with lasting, harmful implications.
The decision continues a dangerous pattern of United States unilateralism and exceptionalism.
As President Bush knocks down treaty after treaty, he erodes the principles of rule of law and multilateral cooperation that are critical in the post-Sept. 11 global security environment.
The world is growing impatient with America’s go-it-alone president. Not only is he damaging American credibility and national honor (the Clinton administration signed the treaty), but his unilateral approach to foreign policy will in the long run be damaging to our national security.
ZACHARY ALLEN
Program Director
Global Security Institute
San Francisco, May 7, 2002
Posted by zack_allen at 06:24 PM
May 07, 2002
The Middle Powers Initiative and the Global Security Institute Link Arms for Disarmament
In January 2002, the GSI Board of Directors and the MPI International Steering Committee unanimously endorsed a resolution accepting “the Middle Powers Initiative [www.middlepowers.org]as a program of the Global Security Institute.” GSI will now take responsibility for the administration and finances of MPI. The leadership of GSI and MPI are confident that the new alliance will play a dynamic and pivotal role in the international movement to eliminate nuclear weapons.
MPI, which started in 1998, is widely regarded in the international arena as a highly effective catalyst in promoting practical steps toward the elimination of nuclear weapons. The members of the MPI International Steering Committee, and its chair Senator Douglas Roche, O.C., former Canadian Ambassador for Disarmament, have unanimously expressed their enthusiasm regarding the merger.
“The new arrangement will add strength and stability to the Middle Powers Initiative,” said Senator Roche. Jonathan Granoff, President of GSI said, “We can all operate more effectively by clarifying our message and building stronger coalitions. There is heightened awareness of the dangers posed by the proliferation of nuclear weapons. We must make it clear that the survival of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty depends upon the nuclear weapons states honoring their unequivocal undertaking at the 2000 NPT Review Conference to make credible progress toward nuclear weapons elimination.”
Through the Middle Powers Initiative, eight international non-governmental organizations* are able to work primarily with “middle power” governments to encourage and educate the nuclear weapons states to take immediate practical steps that reduce nuclear dangers, and commence negotiations to eliminate nuclear weapons.
Middle power countries are politically and economically significant, internationally respected countries that have renounced the nuclear arms race, a standing that gives them significant political credibility.
With MPI now part of GSI, GSI’s activities will fall into the following categories:
I. International Engagement
Building on the strength of MPI, our international engagement takes the following forms:
(A.) Formal delegations to educate and influence high-level policy makers such as Foreign and Prime Ministers. Delegations focus on leaders who can have the greatest impact on policy and domestic and international initiatives, and are often planned to coincide with significant political events;
(B.) Strategic consultations, which serve as “off the record” interventions designed to provide a working environment in which ambassadors, diplomats, experts, and policy makers can come together in an informal setting at pivotal opportunities, in order to complement the ongoing treaty negotiations at various forums such as the United Nations;
(C.) The Parliamentary Network for Nuclear Disarmament, recently created to provide a non-partisan network and forum designed to help Parliamentarians share ideas, legislation, and initiatives, and to take leadership on nuclear disarmament issues;
II. Targeting Key Opinion Leaders & Policy Makers
GSI gathers and influences key constituencies that can serve as powerful and high-profile voices lending credibility to the international movement to eliminate nuclear weapons, such as the 60 prominent generals and admirals from around the world who signed a 1996 statement advocating nuclear elimination. That statement was followed by a series of similar statements endorsed by heads of state, business leaders, cultural figures, mayors, and religious leaders.
III. Outreach to New Areas
GSI brings the nuclear disarmament agenda into new and diverse arenas by initiating and sponsoring innovative events, such as the series of screenings of the film Thirteen Days, with panel discussions (with actual members of President Kennedy’s Executive Committee) on the lessons of the Cuban Missile Crisis, before members of the US Congress and the UN; and institutional engagement with significant legal, religious, and environmental organizations.
IV. Education and Reports
GSI does targeted educational outreach, in the form of influential briefings, reports, legal reviews and documentaries and ongoing media outreach.
The next MPI Strategy Consultation will be held at the beginning of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Prep Comm at the United Nations on April 8, 2002. The Strategy Consultation is designed to ensure the ongoing strength of the NPT as the central and governing legal instrument preventing the spread of nuclear weapons and committing the world to eventual and complete nuclear disarmament.
* Global Security Institute, International Association of Lawyers Against Nuclear Arms, International Network of Engineers and Scientists for Global Responsibility, International Peace Bureau**, International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War**, Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, State of the World Forum, Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom
**Nobel Peace Prize Winners
For more information, please contact the Global Security Institute at 415-775-6760.
www.Global Security Institute.org
Posted by zack_allen at 08:53 AM