Digests and Blog

By ACA Intern Valerie Pacer The Convention on Cluster Munitions entered into force on August 1, 2010 with thirty-eight ratifications and one hundred and eight signatories. The United States, Russia, China, India, Brazil are just some of the many states that have not signed or ratified this important treaty. Reuters named the United States as the world's largest producer of cluster munitions with a "stockpile of 800 million submunitions." Parties to the Convention on Cluster Munitions agree to: Neither use, produce, stockpile, nor sell cluster munitions Destroy existing stockpiles within eight…

Are there viable alternatives? By ACA Intern Daniel Salisbury The costs of the British Trident nuclear deterrent have emerged as an issue in British politics; with HM Treasury looking to cut costs and the Ministry of Defence insisting that cuts are unnecessary. While the current plan for a "like-for-like" renewal of the system was passed in 2007, the British government could choose to make more aggressive cuts to the program. Two pieces highlight the range of options facing the British government. In "Continuous at-Sea Deterrence: Costs and Alternatives," Malcolm Chalmers of the Royal United…

In an excellent editorial on August 11, The Salt Lake Tribune criticizes Mike Lee for his inconsistent and often misinformed position on the CTBT and urged Utah's Senate delegation to support the treaty. After signing a right-wing petition that included opposition to the treaty, then reconsidering and expressing support for ratification, the candidate for Senate announced last week that he was once again opposed to ratification of the CTBT. "Clearly, Lee is having difficulty deciding on this issue," the Tribune writes. "That's fine. It's complex. But we would urge him to return to the…

The American Bar Association's House of Delegates announced on August 10 that it "urges the United States to ratify the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty." The resolution passed the 561-member body by a unanimous voice vote, and no members spoke in opposition to the treaty. Similarly, the ABA House of Delegations passed a resolution in 1994 to call for the U.S. government to curb the spread of nuclear weapons through measures like a comprehensive test ban and further support and continuation of the NPT.

According to the statement: The 64th session of the United Nations General Assembly declared 29 August as the International Day against Nuclear Tests through the unanimous adoption of its resolution 64/35 on 2 December 2009. The Day is meant to galvanize the efforts of the United Nations, Member States, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, academic institutions, youth networks and the media in informing, educating and advocating the necessity of banning nuclear tests as a valuable step to achieving a safer world. The Preamble of the resolution emphasizes “that every effort…

By Eric Auner Global Security Newswire reports that the Indian Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) wants to protect itself from incoming missiles using a "directed energy" system. "Lasers are weapons of the future. We can, for instance, use laser beams to shoot down an enemy missile in its boost or terminal phase," the Times of India quoted Anil Kumar Maini, who heads the Indian Defense Research and Development Organization's Laser Science and Technology Center, as saying. One device under development would fire a 25-kilowatt laser at a ballistic missile to destroy the weapon…

Utah Republican candidate for the Senate Mike Lee has reversed his earlier common-sense position against renewed nuclear testing, and is now indicating that if elected, he would not support the CTBT. In May, Lee announced that he would most likely vote for CTBT ratification. At the time, Lee remarked that, "I don't think we need [nuclear testing] and I think, on the whole, we as Americans would be safer if the treaty were in place." The Salt Lake Tribune reported that Lee's deputy campaign manager Dan Hauser said last Thursday, "[The treaty is] basically [stating] you could never use a…

Last Friday, to commemorate the 65th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon became the first sitting Secretary General to attend the memorial service for the bombing, where he called for the entry into force of the CTBT by 2012. "Now is the time...The time for rapid entry into force of the (CTBT). Let us set the goal of 2012," he said. Members of the United States, French and British governments also attended the ceremony for the first time. Ban Ki-Moon also announced at the service that he will convene an annual high-level meeting in September to…

HMS Vanguard, one of four Royal Navy SSBN vessels By ACA intern Daniel Salisbury The U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne has been ruffling feathers in the Ministry of Defence (MoD) in recent weeks. He has ruled that Trident, the U.K. nuclear deterrent, will now be paid for by the MoD and not a special Treasury fund. This is putting the already strained MoD budget under even more pressure. The Financial Times reports that he made the following comment when questioned during his recent India trip: "All budgets have pressure. I don't think there's anything particularly unique about…

By Eric Auner In August 1945, nuclear weapons were used in war for the first and last time. The Wall Street Journal reports that for the first time the U.S. is sending a representative to Japan's annual ceremony commemorating the bombing of Hiroshima. John Roos, the U.S. ambassador to Japan, will join representatives of 73 other countries, including Britain and France, for Friday's event marking the 65th anniversary of the Aug. 6, 1945, bombing. United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will also attend. The annual Hiroshima peace memorial ceremony—where doves were released as a symbol for…