Caribbean States Vow to Facilitate Swift Entry into Force of Nuclear Ban Treaty

By Jaya Ramachandran

GENEVA (IDN) –Seventy countries have signed and 23 ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) since it was opened for signature at the UN headquarters in New York on September 20, 2017, nearly two-and-a-half months after it was adopted by 122 states. The Treaty will enter into legal force 90 days after 50 nations have signed and ratified it. [2019-06-30 | P08] JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF | NORWEGIAN | SPANISH

Resist Erosion of NPT to Rid the World of Atomic Bombs

Crumbling Security Landscape Ahead of the 2020 Review Conference

Viewpoint by Sergio Duarte

Ambassador Sergio Duarte is President of Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs, and a former UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs. He was president of the 2005 Nonproliferation Treaty Review Conference.

NEW YORK (IDN) – The forthcoming 50th anniversary of the entry into force of the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) provides the opportunity to look for lessons to be learned from its history and from its review cycles. [2019-06-17 | P07] CHINESE | ITALIAN | JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF | RUSSIAN

The Blame Game Obstructs the Path to NPT 50th Anniversary

Viewpoint by Tariq Rauf

Tariq Rauf was Alternate Head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) NPT Delegation 2002-2010, and has attended all NPT meetings as an official delegate since 1987 through 2019. Personal views are expressed here. Click here for his previous article.

NEW YORK (IDN) – In addition to discord and divisions over nuclear disarmament, between the five nuclear-weapon States (NWS) parties, along with their allies, and most of the non-nuclear-weapon States, a contentious issue concerns the establishment of a zone free of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction in the region of the Middle East (MEWMDFZ). [2019-05-21 | P06] HINDI | ITALIAN | JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF | 

Fiddling While the Nuclear Arms Control Architecture Collapses

Viewpoint by Tariq Rauf

The writer was Alternate Head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) NPT Delegation 2002-2010, and has attended all NPT meetings as an official delegate since 1987 through 2019. Personal views are expressed here.

NEW YORK (IDN) – The third and final session of the Preparatory Committee (PrepCom) for the 2020 Review Conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) fizzled out in disagreements over the pace and extent of nuclear disarmament at United Nations headquarters in New York. [2019-05-20 | P05] HINDI | ITALIAN | JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF

Nuclear Non-Proliferation Review Conference Could Hit a U.S. Roadblock

By Shanta Roy

NEW YORK (IDN) – The Trump Administration, which has been recklessly wielding a wrecking ball against multilateral treaties, will be put to a test next year when the 1970 Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) will be up for review at the 2020 conference scheduled to take place in New York in April-May. [2019-05-18 | P04] CHINESE | JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF | KOREAN | RUSSIAN

UN Eager to Advance Commitment to Nuclear Non-Proliferation

By Jamshed Baruah

NEW YORK (IDN) – Deeply concerned about the erosion of the disarmament and arms control framework that reaped significant post-cold-war-era gains, the United Nations is keen to ensure the continued viability of the landmark Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). [2019-04-23 | P03] HINDI | JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF | KOREAN

New Attempt to Tackle Nuclear Proliferation Threat in the Middle East

By Santo D. Banerjee

NEW YORK (IDN) – A conference on the establishment of a Weapons of Mass Destruction-Free Zone (WMDFZ) and a Nuclear Weapons-Free Zone (NWFZ) in the Middle East appeared to have been consigned to oblivion until the First Committee of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) decided  in December 2018 "to entrust to the Secretary-General the convening" of an international meeting to address the risk of nuclear proliferation in one of the world's most volatile regions. [2019-04-22  | P02] ARABIC | JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF | SPANISH

South Africa a Shining Example of Dismantling Nuclear Arsenal

By J Nastranis

NEW YORK (IDN) – As the nuclear weapons and fossil fuel divestment campaigns gather steam, their political impact could be as powerful as the divestment campaign against South Africa in the late 20th Century, which was a critical factor in moving the South African government to end apartheid in 1994, anticipates Thies Kätow, researcher for the World Future Council. [2019-04-13 | P01]  CHINESE | JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF | RUSSIAN

Experts Discuss Prospects Of Peace On The Korean Peninsula

By Katsuhiro Asagiri

TOKYO (IDN) – Nearly 66 years have passed since the Armistice Agreement formally brought about "a complete cessation of hostilities" of the Korean War. One year later, Chinese Premier and Foreign Minister Zhou Enlai proposed a peace treaty. But U.S. Secretary of State, John Foster Dulles, refused – leaving a final peace settlement on the Korean Peninsula hanging in the air. [2019-02-20 | P21] CHINESE | JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF | KOREAN | SPANISH

Uncertain Prospects For Progress In Nuclear Disarmament

Viewpoint by Sergio Duarte

The writer is President of Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs, and a former UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs. He was president of the 2005 Nonproliferation Treaty Review Conference.

NEW YORK (IDN) – Although humankind has known since the dawn of ages the sorrow, misery and devastation caused by war, the most catastrophic military conflicts in history are quite recent.

World War I lasted from July 1914 to November 1918 and claimed some 40 million lives, among civilians and combatants. In all, between 70-85 million people perished during World War II that lasted from 1939 to 1945. The estimated war casualties include those who are believed to have died from war-related causes, including captivity, disease and famine. [2019-02-06 | P20] JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF | SPANISH