Digests and Blog

Lassina Zerbo of Burkina Faso was chosen as the next executive secretary of the CTBTO Preparatory Commission on October 23. Mr. Zerbo who is currently the director of the CTBTO's International Data Center, will succeed Tibor Toth as the head of the organization on August 1, 2013. For a complete description of the election and the five candidates, please see the full article in Arms Control Today. Zerbo's February 29, 2012 presentation on "Progress to Date with the International Monitoring System" is available in the new ACA conference report "CTBT at 15: Status and Prospects."

Australia and New Zealand recently announced an agreement to increase scientific cooperation between the countries' nuclear detection networks. Under the terms of the memorandum of understanding, the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency and Geoscience Australia will work with New Zealand's Institute of Environmental Science to enhance the two states' ability to detect nuclear test explosions. The Institute of Environmental Science and Research plays a key role in the CTBTO's nuclear detection network by managing six radionuclide-monitoring stations in the Pacific…

On November 5, the United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly approved a resolution urging states that have not yet signed or ratified the CTBT to do so "as soon as possible." The resolution garnered 44 co-sponsors, including China and the United States, and was approved by a 166-1-3 margin. North Korea, which was referenced in the resolution in connection with its 2006 and 2009 nuclear test explosions, was the only "no" vote.

Following the November 2012 election, the prospects for achieving U.S. ratification of the CTBT in 2013-2014 have improved. Moving forward and gaining the necessary 67 Senate votes in support of ratification of the CTBT remains difficult, but is within reach. Since the beginning of his first term, President Barack Obama and other senior administration officials have consistently expressed support for the pursuit of U.S. reconsideration and ratification of the treaty. In March 2012, Obama said that: "... my administration will continue to pursue ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban…

The CTBTO signed an agreement with South Korea on October 31 to share tsunami early warning data with the country, making it the ninth CTBTO member state to do so. The International Data Centre (IDC) of the CTBTO, with assistance from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), provides early warning data on tsunamis using a combination of seismic and hydroacoustic monitoring stations to detect "any strong, shallow earthquake under the seafloor" which could trigger a tsunami, according to UNESCO. The IDC currently utilizes data from 40 different monitoring…

Iraq's Ambassador to the IAEA, Surood Rashid Hajib, submits to IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano a letter announcing Iraq's ratification and entry into force of the Additional Protocol in Vienna, Austria on October 23, 2012. By Greg Thielmann It was encouraging, and more than a little ironic, when the government of Iraq recently ratified the Additional Protocol to its comprehensive safeguards agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Iraqi deception was the principal impetus for creating the Additional Protocol in 1997. The absence of Additional Protocol powers for the…

By Greg Thielmann Last night's presidential debate tended to blur some of the fundamental differences that had emerged during the campaign in the candidates' approaches to the Iran nuclear issue, and probably left most viewers more confused about the Iranian imbroglio than ever. "Red Lines" Governor Romney's campaign website recently shifted his red line for taking military action against Iran. He had previously said Iran could not be allowed to possess nuclear weapons, as had President Obama. But two weeks ago, Romney added that he would also not allow Iran to have a "nuclear weapons…

By Greg Thielmann The 800 kilometer range arc for missiles from Seoul. Credit: Al Jazzera The United States and it close ally, the Republic of Korea (ROK), have just scored an "own goal" by agreeing to allow ROK development of longer-range ballistic missiles – a move that will set back international efforts to discourage the proliferation of ballistic missiles that can carry nuclear warheads. Seoul announced an agreement on October 7 that the United States would support the ROK's development of 800 km range/500 kg payload missiles, which would allow Seoul to target all of the Democratic…

By Greg Thielmann The Department of State released today the latest data exchange for the systems limited by the 2010 New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START). Under the provisions of the treaty, the two parties are obligated to exchange data in three categories of strategic forces every six months. The fact of the data exchange reflects well on the parties and on the treaty, but the contents tell a different story. In the two most significant categories, deployed warheads and delivery vehicles, the Russians continue to register below the treaty ceilings, which must be met by February…

By Tom Z. Collina How much confidence would you demand in a missile interceptor system before paying $25 billion for it? When asking your advisers if the system would work against nuclear-armed ballistic missiles and they say "it depends" on things out of your control, how much confidence would you have in the system's ability to protect the United States? Not much. No president could have confidence in a missile interceptor system under these conditions, and in the midst of a fiscal crisis, $25 billion would be more wisely spent on weapon systems the nation might actually be able to depend…