Getting to Zero Update
27 March 2008
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BASIC is embarking on an ambitious new program to help
leaders take the necessary steps to eventually rid the
world of nuclear weapons. To mark this occasion, BASIC
has replaced its Washington Nuclear Update with a new
Getting to Zero update. The Getting to Zero Update will
continue to follow developments that are relevant to
nuclear nonproliferation and the reduction of existing
nuclear stockpiles, as well as reporting on proposals
and political initiatives. The Update will also include
missile defense developments as they relate to 'Getting
to Zero' and BASIC's transatlantic security focus.
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Please note, BASIC and Crisis Action have a bi-weekly update
devoted solely to diplomatic developments related to Iran's
nuclear program, which may be found at the following Web address:
http://www.basicint.org/update/iran.htm.
Previous editions of the Washington Nuclear Update are available
at: http://www.basicint.org/update/wnu.htm.
Earlier in March, BASIC's Co-Executive
Director Paul Ingram presented two papers to a conference
on Iran's nuclear programme in Tehran and BASIC co-hosted
with the U.S. Institute of Peace and the Carnegie Endowment
for International Peace a panel discussion on "A World Free
of Nuclear Weapons" in Washington, DC. See more information
at the bottom of this update and visit BASIC's
GTZ Blog.
In this issue:
COMMITMENTS TO DISARMAMENT AND ARMS CONTROL
Hoover Group Members and other policy leaders reinvigorate
call for world without nuclear weapons
 Members
of the "Hoover Group" and other policy leaders met at a high
level conference and presented papers on "Achieving
the Vision of a World Free of Nuclear Weapons" in Oslo,
Norway on February 26 and 27. The much-anticipated conference
was organized by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI), The Hoover Institution,
and Statens Stralevern (Norwegian Radiation Protection Authority).
Former U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz began the conference
by marking guideposts in nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation
which will involve an "immense effort in diplomacy" in the
"broadest sense" and sounded a warning on nuclear proliferation:
"So
wake up, everybody. The danger is real and the potential
consequences are of catastrophic proportions."
Jonas Gahr Støre, Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs,
delivered a summary
of the conference, reporting: "Although there was broad
agreement about the need for a cooperative approach to nuclear
security, there was a divergence of views about which organization
would be responsible for enforcement, and how it would be
constituted. Four criteria to help judge success along the
road to nuclear disarmament were reiterated: binding commitments,
irreversibility, transparency and verification." Støre concluded
with a series of recommendations for realizing the vision,
including the creation of a non-discriminatory nuclear fuel
supply bank and encouraging the United States and Russia to
reduce their nuclear weapons arsenals down to the hundreds,
not thousands. BASIC was involved in follow-up events to the
conference. See the bottom of this Update for more information.
See also: Papers
and speeches from conference on Achieving the Vision of a
World Free of Nuclear Weapons: International Conference on
Nuclear Disarmament, Oslo, Norway, February 26-27, 2008.
Further reading
Disarmament
redux: The U.S. foreign policy establishment is beginning
to consider progress toward the "d-word" - above and beyond
deterrence-a global security imperative, J. Peter Sclobic,
The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, Vol. 64, No. 1,
March/April 2008, pp. 34-39, 57.
New
leaders and policies are a cause for hope, Joseph Cirincione,
JS Online (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel), March
8, 2008.
The
Future of the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty: The Good, the Bad,
and the Ugly, Keegan McGrath, Stephanie Bobiak and Jean
du Preez, CNS Feature Story, March 7, 2008.
U.S.
senior statesmen and others support the entry into force of
the CTBT, Comprehensive Test-Ban Treaty Organization,
March 4, 2008.
A
World Free of Nuclear Weapons: An Interview With Nuclear Threat
Initiative Co-Chairman Sam Nunn, Interviewed by Daryl
G. Kimball and Miles A. Pomper, Arms Control Today,
March 2008.
Senior
Statesmen on Campaign to Abolish Nukes, Rob Gifford, "Morning
Edition," NPR, February 29, 2008. Link to audio file and Concerns
Continue over Nuclear Proliferation, Mike Shuster, NPR.org,
February 28, 2008.
Comprehensive
Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty: Issues and Arguments, Jonathan
Medalia, CRS Report for Congress, February 28, 2008, via the
Federation of American Scientists Website.
U.N.
Calls On U.S., Russia To Lead The Way For A Nuclear Weapons
Free World, RTT News, February 27, 2008.
The
United States pays US$ 23.8 million to the CTBTO, Comprehensive
Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization Press Release, February
26, 2008.
Country Updates
UNITED STATES
U.S. Strategic Forces Commander emphasizes need for nuclear
deterrent, new nuclear weapons
General Kevin Chilton, commander of U.S. strategic forces,
testified before Congress on February 27, arguing that the
United States needs to maintain a nuclear weapons arsenal
to deter other countries and would also need to pursue
the development of new nuclear warheads. He later told
reporters that the United States would need nuclear weapons
for at
least the rest of this century.
Nominees announced for commission on strategic posture
The House and Senate announced their nominees
for the Congressional Commission on U.S. Strategic Posture
on March 19. The nominees for the Senate include: James Schlesinger,
John Glenn, Fred Ikle, Morton Halperin, James Woolsey, and
Bruce Tarter. The House nominees are: William Perry, John
Foster, Lee Hamilton, Keith Payne, Ellen Williams, and Harry
Cartland. The Commission is expected to review the strategic
posture of the United States, and the role of non-proliferation
programs and missile defenses in strategic policies. Under
current guidelines, the Commission is to conclude its findings
and report to the President and Congress by December 1 of
this year.
Bill calling for nuclear arsenal reductions introduced in
House
Representative James McGovern (Democrat-Massachusetts) introduced
for himself and Rep. Daniel Lungren (Republican-California)
the Global
Security Priorities Resolution on March 13. The resolution
expresses the following Sense of the House of Representatives:
"Recognizing the paramount need to address the threat of international
terrorism and protect the global security of the United States
by reducing the number and accessibility of nuclear weapons
and preventing their proliferation, and directing a portion
of the resulting savings towards child survival, hunger, and
universal education, and calling on the President to take
action to achieve these goals." Also known as H. RES. 1045,
the bill has been referred to the House Committee on Foreign
Affairs.
Parts used for detonation of nuclear warheads mistakenly
transferred to Taiwan
The Department of Defense announced on March 25 that four
"non-nuclear" nose cone assemblies and their associated electrical
components for a ballistic missile were mistakenly shipped
to Taiwan in the fall of 2006. Secretary of the Air Force,
Michael Wynn, said during a DoD
press conference that the Defense Logistics Agency was
supposed to fill a Foreign Military Sales Order from Taiwan
for helicopter batteries, but instead accidentally shipped
the nose-cone assemblies and electrical components. Secretary
Wynn said that based on preliminary information, it is the
DoD's understanding that the shipment was placed in storage
upon receipt. The parts were returned to the United States
last week. The Secretary noted that, "This could not be construed
as being nuclear material," but added "It is a component for
the fuse in the nose cone for a nuclear system. We are very
concerned about it." Beijing
issued a protest with Washington following the revelation
of the shipment.
Air Force Chief of Staff says conventional bombing demands
have weakened nuclear training
General Michael Moseley, the U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff,
told reporters at the end of February that steps have been
taken to prevent the same kind of mistake that happened in
August when nuclear weapons were accidentally loaded onto
a bomber in North Dakota and flown over the United States.
General Moseley said that the demands of the B-52's conventional
bombing missions over Afghanistan have detracted
from training for their nuclear role, "We need to somehow
allow the squadron commander to focus on that (nuclear mission)
and that alone." Among other changes, B-52 crews
will train exclusively for nuclear attack missions for
at least six months at a time, rather than frequently alternating
between conventional and nuclear training.
Resignation of Admiral over Iran policy
Admiral William Fallon, the Commander of U.S. Middle East
operations, resigned on March 11. Speculation has persisted
that his departure was at least partly the result of an article
published in Esquire magazine. The article
suggested that Admiral Fallon was against a military attack
on Iran and that he was undermining the attempt by some
in the Bush Administration to pursue such a course.
Debates over nuclear weapons complex rage on
The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) has been
holding public
hearings on its plans
to transform the nuclear weapons complex and anticipated
environmental effects. The hearings have also attracted people
concerned about the impacts on local employment and economies
as well as others who have voiced
concerns that the plans will lead to long-term reliance
and spending on nuclear weapons arsenals. The comment
period on the Complex Transformation Supplemental
Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (SPEIS) ends
April 10, 2008.
Further Reading
Y-12
reports on 'massive consolidation effort', Oakridger
(Tennessee), March 25, 2008.
LIVERMORE:
Major cuts planned at nuclear labs; Lawrence Livermore, Los
Alamos among sites destined for new role as nation reduces
its stockpile of nuclear weapons, David Perlman, San
Francisco Chronicle, March 18, 2008.
U.S.
Nuclear Weapons Complex: Livermore Homes and Plutonium Make
Bad Neighbors, Project on Government Oversight (POGO),
March 17, 2008.
Bush
Budget Revives Cut Warhead, Wade Boese, Arms Control
Today, March 2008.
NNSA:
Working to Prevent Nuclear Terrorism, National Nuclear
Security Administration Fact Sheet, March 2008.
U.S. Presidential Elections
Senator Barack Obama (Democrat - Illinois) called for direct
negotiations between Washington and Tehran to dissuade
Iran from producing nuclear weapons, and has pointed
to the need to achieve the objectives of the NPT as outlined
by the Hoover Group. Meanwhile, Senator
John McCain (Republican - Arizona) said that the United
States should not tolerate a nuclear armed Iran but did not
specify how U.S. actions should play out. Although during
his visit to France on March 21, Senator McCain urged President
Nicolas Sarkozy to take a strong lead on sanctions to prevent
Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
Also see: An
Early Look Ahead, John Isaacs, RightWeb Analysis,
February 28, 2008. This article covers foreign policy positions
of U.S. Presidential candidates, including missile defense,
nuclear weapons, North Korea and Iran.
IRAN
On February 22, the IAEA published a report
on Iran's compliance with its investigation into the country's
nuclear program. The report noted that while some questions
had been resolved and could be closed, Iran had not been fully
forthcoming on work possibly related to nuclear weapons. As
before, Iran rejected
the accusations. The IAEA had shown to Iranian officials
the evidence that indicated Iran may have been trying to make
nuclear weapons, with most of that evidence apparently having
been provided by the United States. Iran said that the IAEA
revealed
the evidence on February 15, too late for it to provide
a full explanation and rejected much of the information as
being false. The IAEA explained the late notice, saying that
it had to obtain permission from countries before it could
share their evidence with Iran.
The U.N. Security Council imposed a third round of sanctions
on March 3, issuing a travel ban and freezing the assets of
more individuals and companies linked to Iran's nuclear program.
The sanctions were again rebuffed by Iranian President Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad.
U.N. Member States have had a mixed track record of reporting
on their compliance with the previous two rounds of sanctions.
Eighty-eight
of 192 U.N. member states have filed mandatory reports
on how they are complying with the first round of sanctions
against Iran, and fewer (72) states are meeting reporting
requirements for the second round of sanctions.
The UK Parliament's Foreign
Affairs Committee published a report on Iran on March
2, noting that sanctions against Iran without more diplomatic
engagement, or military strikes on any suspected facilities,
were unlikely to work and that the United States should engage
in a direct dialogue with Iran. The Guardian reported
on March 6 that a senior British official contends that Iran
may
not have halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003, contrary
to the conclusions of a U.S. National Intelligence Estimate
released several months ago.
On March 14, conservative candidates won
well over a majority of seats - the vast majority of reformist
candidates had already been barred by the Guardian Council.
On March 19, during a statement on Radio Farda, President
Bush
misspoke about Iran's nuclear intentions, saying that
Iran "declared they want a nuclear weapon to destroy people."
Such an official declaration has not come from Iran. Radio
Farda is a U.S.-run radio station broadcast in Farsi.
Further Reading
A Solution
for the U.S.-Iran Nuclear Standoff, William Luers, Thomas
R. Pickering and Jim Walsh, The New York Review of Books,
Volume 55, No. 4, March 20, 2008.
Kissinger
backs direct U.S. talks with Iran, Camilla Hall and Mike
Schneider, Bloomberg News via Deseret Morning News,
March 15, 2008.
Luers: Possible
Solution for U.S.-Iran Nuclear Standoff, Gwertzman
Asks the Experts, Council on Foreign Relations, March
13, 2008.
Take
Two: Iran's Plan for Nuclear Compliance, Sharon Squassoni
and Nima Gerami, Proliferation Analysis, Carnegie Endowment
for International Peace, March 5, 2008.
Albright:
Next U.S. President Must Deal Quickly with the Iran Nuclear
Program, Gwertzman Asks the Experts, Council on
Foreign Relations, March 3, 2008.
Changing the Frame
of the International Debate Over Iran's Nuclear Programme:
Iran's Role in Moving Towards a Nuclear Weapon Free World,
Paul Ingram, and Changing
the Frame of the International Debate Over Iran's Nuclear
Programme: Other Solutions to Iran's Energy Insecurity,
Paul Ingram and Laura Spagnuolo, BASIC Notes, March 2008.
IAEA:
Iran Work Plan Progress Incomplete, Peter Crail, Arms
Control Today, March 2008.
ElBaradei
is quietly managing to disarm Iran, Ray Takeyh and Joseph
Cirincione, Financial Times, February 27, 2008.
IAEA Iran Latest -
A Balanced Safeguards Report, David Albright and Jacqueline
Shire, ISIS Issue Brief, February 22, 2008.
Implementation
of the NPT Safeguards Agreement in the Islamic Republic of
Iran, IAEA Report on Iran, February 22, 2008.
INDIA
On March 17, the Indian government failed
to reach a breakthrough in meetings with opposition leaders
for their support on an agreement with the United States that
would allow India access to U.S. nuclear fuel. At the end
of February, U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates had visited
India to strengthen military ties between his country and
India. He discussed with Indian officials the possibility
of a $10
billion fighter jet agreement which would include 126
combat aircraft. The deepening relations are seen in part
within the context of the United States seeking to bolster
Indian military strength as a counterweight to China.
At the end of February, for the first time India tested a
nuclear-capable
missile from a sea-based platform. Pakistan's naval chief
said that the test of the missile could
start a new arms race in the region because the missile,
called the K-15, could give India a second-strike capability
in a nuclear war. On March 24, India test-fired
an Agni I missile, which has the capability of reaching
most targets in Pakistan.
Australia denied visas to two Indian nuclear scientists based
on "health and character grounds" and fears that they could
obtain sensitive information that would
help India's nuclear weapons program. In a separate development,
an Indian national who has resided in South Carolina, Parthasarathy
Sudarsan, pleaded guilty to charges that he illegally
exported microprocessors and other electronics equipment
to Indian agencies that could assist India's ballistic missile
program. In another case, MTS Systems Corporation, based in
Minnesota, was fined for falsifying
export control documents and exporting equipment to India
that might be used to support its nuclear weapons program.
Further Reading
Non-Proliferation
Experts Call on State Department to Come Clean on Questions
Concerning U.S.-Indian Nuclear Deal, Arms Control Association
Press Release, March 5, 2008.
Missile
Defense: A Wrong Turn for U.S.-India Cooperation? Todd
Fine, Center for Defense Information, March 5, 2008.
History,
Design and Prospects for Improving Pakistan's Nuclear Personnel
Reliability Program (PRP), Max Postman, Center for Arms
Control and Non-Proliferation, March 5, 2008.
Contradictions
Still Plague U.S.-Indian Nuclear Deal, Daryl Kimball,
Arms Control Today, March 2008.
U.S.-Indian
Deal in Limbo as Clock Ticks, Wade Boese, Arms Control
Today, March 2008.
Indian Space
Launch Vehicles and ICBM, Center for Defense Information,
February 29, 2008.
Interview
with the Times of India, R. Nicholas Burns, Under Secretary
for Political Affairs, Washington, DC, February 29, 2008.
NORTH KOREA
On March 15, U.S. Under Secretary of State Christopher Hill
and North Korean counterpart Kim Kye-Gwan held negotiations
in Geneva. Hill said that North Korea was still unwilling
to make a full
account of its nuclear program, which Washington believes
includes a uranium enrichment program and nuclear cooperation
with Syria. North Korea has denied the allegations. Hill said
that some
advances were made on disarmament. Earlier in March, the
United States and South Korea held joint
military exercises that involved thousands of troops.
North Korea responded to the exercises, saying that they would
slow down negotiations over nuclear programs.
On March 11, the South Korean Foreign Ministry said that
North Korea will
benefit from South Korean economic aid and help to increase
the per capita income to $3,000 if North Korea can show that
it has dismantled its nuclear weapons program. The Ministry
also said that the government would intensify relevant regional
dialogues. The South Korean government did clarify, however,
that it would not
link food and fertilizer aid to North Korea's denuclearization.
Also see: A
New National Security Strategy for Korea: North Korea Threats
Require Deterrence, Reconciliation, Bruce Bennett, (RAND),
commentary - originally appeared in the Korea Herald
on March 13, 2008.
UNITED KINGDOM
The Independent on March 9 was reporting on U.K. plans
to ship plutonium dioxide powder to France on a low security
ferry, against the advice of some policy makers and terrorism
and environmental experts.
On February 27, the United Kingdom signed
onto the U.S.-led Global Nuclear Energy Partnership. GNEP
activities include seeking new nuclear energy and recycling
technologies, promoting the use of nuclear energy around the
world and extracting uranium and plutonium from spent nuclear
fuel and processing it for reuse. See also: Bush
Calls for More GNEP, MOX Facility Funds, Miles A. Pomper,
Arms Control Today, March 2008.
FRANCE
On March 21, French President Nicolas Sarkozy reaffirmed
his commitment to France's nuclear deterrent, citing Iran
as a particular threat, but announced that France would cut
its warhead stockpile to fewer than 300. He also called
on China and the United States to ratify the Comprehensive
Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. Also see: France's
Nuclear Diplomacy, Michelle M. Smith and Charles D. Ferguson,
International Herald Tribune, March 11, 2008.
CHINA
In early March, the U.S. Department of Defense released its
annual report to Congress: Military
Power of the People's Republic of China 2008 (available
on the Website of the Federation of American Scientists -
warning: document is 30 MB). The report says that China
has made advancements in strategic strike capabilities and
also argues that the international community has limited knowledge
of the motivations and decision-making behind China's force
modernization. China's People Daily criticized
the Pentagon's report, saying that it exaggerated China's
cyber warfare and military space capabilities.
During a DoD news briefing on March 3, David Sedney, Deputy
Assistant Secretary of Defense for East Asia, announced that
talks between the United
States and China on nuclear strategy and policy could
begin within the next two months.
Further reading
Kangzhuang
and DF-31, Jeffrey Lewis, Arms Control Wonk, March 15,
2008.
Chinese
Nuclear Arsenal Increased by a Third Since 2006, Pentagon
Report Indicates, Hans Kristensen, Strategic Security
Blog -Federation of American Scientists, March 6, 2008.
NORWAY
During the nuclear disarmament conference held in Oslo on
February 26-27, the Norwegian government announced that it
would contribute $5
million toward the international nuclear fuel bank project
under the IAEA. The project's aim is to establish a low-enriched
uranium reserve that would provide countries with nuclear
energy. The project needs $45 million more in donations to
become fully operative. Bellona, a Norwegian environmental
organization, raised
concerns about Norway's support for the project, saying
that it could lead to environmental damage and that the government
should have stipulated that its contribution would be used
exclusively for dealing with the environmental impacts of
the project once it is implemented.
MISSILE DEFENSE
The Bush Administration tried again without
success to garner the approval of Russian leaders on plans
for U.S. missile defense bases in Eastern Europe in a meeting
on March 18 in Moscow. The Bush Administration has faced fierce
criticism because of its desire to forge ahead with bilateral
arrangements with Poland and the Czech Republic regardless
of Russian concerns that such deployments would neutralise
their second strike capability. After the meeting, Russian
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Isvestiya that
the United States has said that it would permit
Russia to monitor the missile defense sites.
Ongoing negotiations between the United States and Poland
inched
closer toward a deal on having Poland host the ten missile
interceptors. Poland was apparently able to obtain U.S. agreement
on combining an eventual deal on missile defense with a U.S.
military aid package.
Peter Flory, NATO Assistant Secretary-General for Defence
Investment Division, told members of the press on March 12
that NATO would delay
a decision for a "bolt on" missile defense system that
would be intended to protect countries that would not be covered
by the current U.S. missile defense proposal. The "unprotected"
countries are said to include: Bulgaria, Greece, Romania,
and Turkey. NATO members still have questions about the costs
and effectiveness of the project and will not reach such an
agreement in time for the Bucharest Summit on April 2-4, 2008.
A general announcement that will acknowledge agreement on
missile threats is still anticipated.
The U.S. Government Accountability Office released two publications
on the Missile Defense Agency's Ballistic Missile Defense
System (BMDS) (the aforementioned system for Europe is related
to this program). A summary of Congressional testimony submitted
by the GAO's Director for Acquisition and Sourcing Management
states:
In the past year, MDA has fielded additional and
new assets, enhanced the capability of some existing assets,
and achieved most test objectives. However, MDA did not meet
the goals it originally set for the block. Ultimately, MDA
fielded fewer assets, increased costs by about $1 billion
and conducted fewer tests. Even with the cost increase, MDA
deferred work to keep costs from increasing further, as some
contractors overran their fiscal year 2007 budgets. Deferring
work obscures the cost of the block because such work is no
longer counted as part of Block 2006... We were unable to
assess whether MDA met its overall performance goal because
there have not been enough flight tests to provide a high
confidence that the models and simulations accurately predict
BMDS performance. Moreover, the tests done to date have been
developmental in nature, and do not provide sufficient realism
for DOD's test and evaluation Director to determine whether
BMDS is suitable and effective for battle.
The BMDS program is the Defense Department's largest research
and development program. See the full reports: Defense
Acquisitions: Assessment of DOD Efforts to Enhance Missile
Defense Capabilities and Oversight, U.S. Government Accountability
Office, February 26, 2008 and Defense
Acquisitions: Progress Made in Fielding Missile Defense, but
Program is Short of Meeting Goals, U.S. Government Accountability
Office, March 2008.
Further Reading
Missile
Agency Under Fire, Josh Rogin, CQ Weekly, March
23, 2008.
Missile
Defense and Arms Control: 25 Years Later, Philip Coyle
and Victoria Samson, Center for Defense Information, March
21, 2008.
Moscow's
Missile Gambit, Robert Joseph and J.D. Crouch II, Washington
Post, March 13, 2008.
Downing
a sick satellite, or upping the arms race, Katie Mounts,
The Topeka-Capital Journal, March 7, 2008.
Is
an Outer Space Arms Control Treaty Verifiable, Paula A.
DeSutter, Assistant Secretary for Verification, Compliance,
and Implementation, Remarks to the George C. Marshall Institute
Roundtable at the National Press Club, Washington, DC, March
4, 2008.
Space
Weapons Spending in the FY 2009 Defense Budget, Theresa
Hitchens and Victoria Samson, Center for Defense Information,
March 2008.
Shooting
down USA-193: A $100 million shot to be followed by even greater
political costs, Victoria Samson, Center for Defense Information,
February 26, 2008.
Satellite
Shootdown was a Necessary Operation, Baker Spring, The
Heritage Foundation WebMemo #1823, February 22, 2008.
PUBLICATIONS
Arm
Wrestling, Richard Weitz, The National Interest,
March - April 2008.
After
Putin, Joseph Biden, The Wall Street Journal, March
24, 2008.
Identity Politics and Nuclear Disarmament: the Case of Ukraine,
Christopher Stevens, The Nonproliferation Review, Vol.
15, No. 1, March 2008. (Abstract.
Full article unavailable without subscription.) Also see:
Ukrainians
Want to Leave Nuclear Era Behind (poll), Angus Reid Global
Monitor, March 23, 2008.
Detecting
nuclear and radiological materials, The Royal Society,
March 6, 2008. The report is the result of a workshop held
in December 2007.
Falling
Behind: International Scrutiny of the Peaceful Atom, ed.
Henry D. Sikolski, Nonproliferation Policy Education Center,
a wake-up call on the effectiveness of the IAEA in achieving
its mission, along with seven clear recommendations on how
to improve the non-proliferation capabilities of the system.
The
Department of Defense and the Nuclear Mission in the 21st
Century, Clark Murdock, A Beyond Goldwater-Nichols Phase
4 Report, Center for Strategic and International Studies,
March 2008.
Oil
for nukes - mostly a bad idea; Bartering nuclear technology
for oil is a path to the spread of nuclear weapons, Matthew
Fuhrmann, Christian Science Monitor, February 29, 2008.
GETTING TO ZERO project
BASIC was involved in two immediate follow-up events on the
nuclear weapons conference in Oslo. George Shultz and Sam
Nunn addressed a meeting of the United Kingdom's All-Party
Parliamentary Group on Global Security and Non-Proliferation
(clerked by BASIC) on February 28 in London. The meeting was
packed, an extraordinary situation for a Thursday evening
on a quiet day, when most parliamentarians would be expected
in their constituencies. Members attending included several
high-profile former cabinet members. The session was lively,
and parliamentarians showed a keen interest.
 On
March 6 in Washington, BASIC co-sponsored with the United
States Institute of Peace and the Carnegie Endowment for International
Peace A
World Without Nuclear Weapons: The International Dimension.
Ambassadors Max Kampelman and James Goodby, and nuclear proliferation
expert George Perkovich, spoke to a standing-room only crowd
at the U.S. Institute of Peace. They discussed the outcome
of the conference in Oslo and pointed out the challenges that
lay ahead in getting to zero.
 In
particular, Ambassador Kampelman reflected on his time serving
in the Reagan Administration and the negotiations held at
Reykjavik, emphasizing that Americans should be motivated
by the "ought" of nuclear disarmament. George Perkovich discussed
the practical aspects of nuclear disarmament and addressed
the criticisms that have been levelled at the endeavour. Ambassador
Goodby reviewed the various steps that need to be taken on
the way to complete nuclear disarmament. Follow
this link to USIP for a full summary and audio recording
of the event.
BASIC Co-Executive Director Paul Ingram participated in
a conference on Iran's nuclear program in Tehran on March
9. He presented two papers seeking to change the frame of
the international debate over Iran's nuclear program:
The conference was hosted by the Institute for Political
and International Studies (IPIS), a think-tank closely associated
with the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic.
Also see: Iran
Conference Report, Jonathan Granoff, Global Security Institute,
March 10, 2008.
Visit BASIC's GTZ Blog and post
a comment.
Adam Pitman
BASIC's work is made possible by the generous support of
our donors: the Ploughshares
Fund, the Ford Foundation,
the Joseph Rowntree Charitable
Trust, and Rockefeller Family Associates.
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