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https://theconversation.com/nuclear-powers-are-expanding-their-arsenals-instead-of-disarming-australia-doesnt-have-to-be-complicit-in-this-283676>
"Hundreds of diplomats from almost every country just met for four weeks at
United Nations headquarters in New York to review the most comprehensive
nuclear non-proliferation treaty in the world. And they agreed to absolutely
nothing.
After thousands of interventions, working papers, statements, national reports,
side events, preparatory conferences, closed-door meetings and consultations,
the delegates couldn’t even reach consensus on the most hollowed-out statement.
Nearly all of the 190 signatories genuflect to the importance of the
Treaty on
the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). Yet, this is the third review
conference in a row that has failed to achieve any agreed outcome. Since the
treaty was indefinitely extended in 1995, only two conferences, in 2000 and
2010, reached any agreement at all.
The NPT contains a grand bargain: the five states that had nuclear weapons when
the treaty was adopted in 1968 (China, France, the Soviet Union/Russia, the
United Kingdom and the United States) would agree to disarm in exchange for
countries without nuclear weapons pledging not to acquire them. These countries
would instead gain access to technology and materials for “peaceful” nuclear
uses.
While the International Atomic Energy Agency and its nuclear safeguards bind
the states without nuclear weapons to their agreement, there is no
organisation, process, timeline or enforcement on the disarmament side.
Nearly 60 years after the treaty entered into force, none of the disarmament
measures that have been discussed repeatedly at NPT conferences over the
decades have been implemented. Disarmament is going backwards. The world is in
the midst of a new nuclear arms race with more dangerous, more accurate,
faster, stealthier, and longer-range weapons being rolled out."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
