The abolition of nuclear weapons is being debated today with unprecedented seriousness. In a landmark speech in Prague on April 5 last year, President Barack Obama fostered new optimism for U.S. global leadership "to seek the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons." If the goal is not just to reduce nuclear weapons but eventually abolish them, then a formidable array of technical and political challenges arises.
Beginning before the one-year anniversary of the Prague speech and continuing over the next two months, George Perkovich and James Acton lay out in an eight-part series major points of agreement and contention on the path to a stable and secure world free of nuclear weapons based on the views of thirteen distinguished international experts, which appeared in longer form in the book, Abolishing Nuclear Weapons: A Debate, published in February 2009.
Preventing the civilian nuclear fuel cycle from contributing to proliferation is an integral part of the disarmament challenge. The nuclear industry should participate positively in efforts to advance nonproliferation tools rather than seek to distance itself from this challenge.
It is difficult to predict how public opinion will affect disarmament dynamics. However, it could act as a brake on disarmament progress rather than as an accelerator.
Ultimately, the challenge of enforcement is more difficult and important than the process of verification for securing a world without nuclear weapons.
The prospect of enforcing a ban on the possession or use of nuclear weapons would require addressing similar difficulties to those faced in abolishing nuclear weapons entirely.
Governments should commission their defense research institutions to assess whether and how multilateral nuclear disarmament could be managed in nuclear-armed states to reach lower numbers.
The consideration of nuclear abolition is highly speculative, but keeping the long-term goal in mind while addressing near-term security challenges can achieve more good than harm.
High-level officials from nuclear-weapon states and non-nuclear-weapon states should consult one another directly on disarmament initiatives and to seek agreement on corresponding nonproliferation measures.
World government need not be invoked in considerations of abolishing nuclear weapons. Instead, nuclear abolition can be a realistic organizing principle of states seeking to balance and order their relations in ways that remove the threats of mass destruction.
A distinguished group of experts from thirteen countries explore how to overcome obstacles to nuclear disarmament and pose questions that require further official and nongovernmental deliberation.
Absent a good education environment, there is little room for the Arab world’s youth to turn into responsible citizens who can consolidate and stimulate social transformation to bring about more prosperous and free societies.
China’s traditional diplomacy is at a crossroads as it adjusts to the new global order. The financial crises, climate change, and regional instability have propelled China into a new global role and in turn, a new era of diplomacy.
The obvious and often painful mismatch between aspiration and reality in European foreign policy has plagued discourse on European integration during the last decade.
While there are a number of reasons behind Moscow’s stance on Syria, confronting the West and increasing tension in their relations with the broader Middle East is at odds with Russia’s wider interests.
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