NPT Proves To Be An Exercise In Bad Faith As It Turns 50

Viewpoint by Alice Slater

The writer is the New York representative for the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation and serves on the Coordinating Committee of World Beyond War.

NEW YORK (IDN) – On July 1, the 1968 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) turned 50. In that agreement, five nuclear weapons states – the U.S., Russia, UK, France, and China – pledged to make "good faith efforts" to give up their nuclear weapons, while non-nuclear weapons states vowed not to acquire them. Every country in the world agreed to join the treaty except for India, Pakistan, and Israel which then went on to develop their own nuclear arsenals.

UN Chief Favours Implementation of Iran Nuclear Deal

By Kelsey Davenport

The author is director for nonproliferation policy at the Arms Control Association (ACA). This article was part of the ACA's Newsletter of June 29, 2018.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (IDN-INPS) – UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the nuclear deal with Iran is at a “crossroads” and expressed his deep regret over U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the agreement and reimpose sanctions.

Experts Accentuate the Significance of Trump-Putin Summit

By Jamshed Baruah

NEW YORK (IDN) – "We are on the brink of a new cold war," warned UN Secretary-General António Guterres on May 24, 2018 adding that there are no negotiations under way between the U.S. and Russia for further strategic nuclear arms reductions. Whether presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin would turn over a new leaf when they meet in Helsinki, Finland on July 16 remains to be seen.

Revolutionary Change Bringing in DPRK From the Cold

Viewpoint by Jayantha Dhanapala*

KANDY (IDN) – Sentosa, the Singapore venue of the historic June 12 summit meeting between President Donald Trump and Chairman Kim Jong Un, is today an ultra modern pleasure island with a name derived from the Sanskrit ‘Santosa’, but with its old Malay name Pulao Blakang Mati (Island of Death Behind) clinging to it as a reminder of a murky past as a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp and a disease ridden swamp.

Nuclear Ban Treaty Beacons the End of Nuclear Age

Viewpoint by Rebecca Johnson

Dr Rebecca Johnson is founding President of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) and director of the Acronym Institute for Disarmament Diplomacy. She contributed this viewpoint as foreword to the publication titled 'Toward A World Without Nuclear Weapons' published by the International Press Syndicate Group with IDN-InDepthNews as its flagship agency, and the Global Cooperation Council as part of a media project with Soka Gakkai International (SGI). – The Editor.

LONDON (IDN) – If we survive this turbulent period, histories may record that 2017-18 marked the end of the nuclear age and the beginning – we hope – of a new era of peace-building and security. JAPANESE

A Call To 'Action Now' On United Nations Disarmament Agenda

By A.L.A. Azeez

The writer is Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the UN in Geneva. While analysing the UN Secretary-General António Guterres' new disarmament agenda entitled, Securing Our Common Future, Ambassador Azeez calls for" the increased availability of disarmament education and fellowship opportunities" to make up for the loss of a generation of professionals and experts in many countries, resulting from "the inaction or lack of progress in disarmament over two decades.

Ulaanbaatar Forum Pleads For Denuclearization Leading To Korean Unification

By Ramesh Jaura

BERLIN | ULAANBAATAR (IDN) – Korean Unification has not been at the heart of a growing thaw in inter-Korean relations. But it was the centerpiece of the International Forum in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. Entitled 'Korean Unification through Reduction of Tension and Confidence Building', the Forum on June 7-8, 2018 adopted a Statement drawing attention to "the centenary of the Korean Independence Movement" in 2019 and supporting "the goal of peaceful unification of the Korean people."

Substance Eludes Kim-Trump Historic Summit

By Sergio Duarte

The writer is Ambassador, former UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, and President of Pugwash.

NEW YORK (IDN) – The off-again, on-again meeting between President Donald Trump and Chairman Kim Jong-un which finally took place in Singapore on June 12 was undoubtedly an historic occasion. However, a sober analysis of its outcome can hardly conclude that it was either a success or a failure. Even so, the mere fact that after several weeks of mutual provocations and derogatory exchanges the two leaders agreed to meet in a cordial, almost congenial atmosphere is in itself an auspicious achievement.

The Trump-Kim Singapore Summit Relieves Tensions, Nuclear Dangers Remain

By David Krieger

The writer is President of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation. He is the author and editor of many books on peace and nuclear weapons abolition, including ‘Speaking of Peace: Quotations to Inspire Action.’ This article first appeared on NAPF. – The Editor.

SANTA BARBARA (IDN) - The Singapore Summit was a dramatic turn-around from the adolescent name calling that Trump and Kim had engaged in only months before. Trump had labelled Kim as “Little Rocket Man,” and Kim had labelled Trump as “Dotard.”

Paving the Way to Denuclearization and Peace with North Korea

By Daryl G. Kimball

The author is Executive Director of the Arms Control Association. Following is the text of an Issue Brief analyzing the prospects beyond the U.S.-North Korean Summit on June 12 in Singapore.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (IDN) – The South Korean-brokered diplomatic opening between leaders from the United States and the Democratic Peoples’ Republic of Korea (DPRK) that began in January 2018 is a welcome shift away from the missile and nuclear tests and “fire and fury” threats of 2017 that brought the region to the brink of a catastrophic war.