Fall 2009
Perspective
New Hope on Nuclear Weapons
UCS was born 40 years ago this past December, when a group of scientists came together to express their concern about nuclear weapons and to call on all scientists to help build a more peaceful world. Today, nuclear weapons remain a grave threat and are increasingly a liability to U.S. security. They do not protect us from—or deter—terrorist attacks. With more than 20,000 of these weapons in the world, some on hair-trigger alert, there is significant risk of an accident or theft. Fortunately, we now have an opening to improve U.S. nuclear policy and achieve our organization's original goal of making the world safer by curbing and reversing the development and spread of nuclear weapons.
| In this issue of Catalyst:
> In the Footsteps of Thoreau |
Last April, President Obama gave a speech in Prague articulating a new, pragmatic direction in U.S. nuclear policy that would significantly reduce the role these frighteningly powerful weapons have in our national security policy. The president has begun to turn this rhetoric into reality by initiating talks with Russia to reduce U.S. and Russian nuclear weapons, which together make up 95 percent of the world's stockpile. We expect this "New START" agreement (so called because it builds upon the original Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) to be a positive first step in making modest reductions in both countries' warheads and delivery systems.
Securing the necessary political support for this and other policies, however, will be a tremendous challenge. The U.S. Senate must consent to international treaties by a two-thirds majority, so UCS is working to build the bipartisan support necessary to ratify New START and build momentum for other steps, including reconsideration of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, which would ban all nuclear explosive testing.
We are also working to ensure that the congressionally mandated Nuclear Posture Review—due in early 2010—accurately reflects the goals and plans the president laid out in Prague. This review will serve as the foundation for overall U.S. policy on nuclear weapons for many years to come.
The public's support will be critical if we are to capitalize on this opportunity early in the Obama administration, and UCS is working to engage citizens, scientists, and others in the national discussion. Through our efforts now, we hope to be able to look back decades hence and point to this year as the moment when the successful push toward a world free of nuclear weapons began.
–Kevin Knobloch, president
