Obama signs off on new nuclear weapons production

Two strong articles have appeared in response to President Obama's decision to fund three new nuclear weapons production facilities. Greg Mello writes in The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists that Obama, despite his Nobel Peace Prize, never really articulated a disarmament agenda. Father John Dear laments in the National Catholic Reporter that the President's decision to "raise up a hopeful vision and, behind the scenes, ensure its dying" is an "Orwellian nightmare".

Nonproliferation Policy Education Center warns that nuclear power subsidies risk worldwide proliferation of nuclear weapons

Henry Sokolski, Executive Director of NPEC, has warned that U.S. Department of Energy taxpayer-backed loan guarantees for new atomic reactors in the U.S. will set a bad international example that could be followed by foreign governments seeking to conceal nuclear weapon programs behind a nuclear power facade. He points out that a large-scale atomic reactor can generate enough plutonium each year for "scores" of nuclear weapons, if it is chemically separated from radioactive waste. In addition, the enrichment of uranium for nuclear fuel fabrication can be readily diverted for the manufacture of bomb-grade high enriched uranium (HEU).

An important dialogue about Iran and nuclear weapons

How can we best enforce our own obligations and those of others—in particular the Islamic Republic of Iran—on nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament? Is there an opportunity under present conditions for a distinctly U.S.-Iranian dialogue on regional Middle Eastern and nuclear issues, and if so, how could such dialogue be promoted by civil society, NGO’s, and interfaith communities? Are there prospects for serious dialogue among the U.S., Iran, Israel, and other Middle East states on a regional solution to the nuclear threat? These are some of the questions that will be posed - and hopefully answered by a panel of experts - at the February 11  Iran, Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Middle East Regional Solutions Congressional Briefing hosted by the Project for Nuclear Awareness. The briefing takes place at the Washington, DC United Methodist Church from 2:15-4pm and is co-sponsored by a number of groups including Beyond Nuclear. More details here.



Bulletin of Atomic Scientists turns back Doomsday Clock

The board of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists has turned its Doomsday Clock back by one minute - from five minutes to midnight to six minutes. In a statement today, made during a live, web-cast conference, the board members stated: "We are poised to bend the arc of history toward a world free of nuclear weapons. For the first time since atomic bombs were dropped in 1945, leaders of nuclear weapons states are cooperating to vastly reduce their arsenals and secure all nuclear bomb-making material. And for the first time ever, industrialized and developing countries alike are pledging to limit climate-changing gas emissions that could render our planet nearly uninhabitable". The full statement can be found on the Bulletin's Web site.

Arms control experts meet to build pressure on White House

A group of experts in the field of arms control met recently at the DC offices of the Ploughshares Fund to develop a strategy that will push the Obama administration to fulfill its global disarmament pledge made during a speech by the president last April in Prague. As reported in Foreign Policy, there are many major developments pending on the non-proliferation front: "The next six months will see either the significant advancement or the defeat of a host of arms-control priorities. The agenda includes ratification of the still-pending START follow-on agreement with Russia, the February release of the president's budget, the March release of the Nuclear Posture Review, a major summit on nuclear terrorism in Washington in April, and the Nonproliferation Treaty conference in May. A push for U.S. ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) is also coming."