Senators Markey and Rubio Urge President-elect Trump to Strengthen Commitment to Alliances and Nonproliferation

U.S. Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA)As posted at U.S. Senator Edward J. Markey's website:

Wednesday, December 14, 2016

Senators call for assurances of commitment to alliance institutions such as NATO, and firm opposition to the spread of nuclear weapons

Washington (December 14, 2016) – Senators Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), members of the Foreign Relations Committee, sent a letter today to President-elect Donald Trump calling on him to strengthen our system of alliances, including NATO and the U.S.-Japan Mutual Security Treaty, and long-standing nuclear nonproliferation policies. In the letter, the Senators stress the need to assure allies of America’s commitment to their defense and affirm opposition to the spread of nuclear weapons. By strengthening assurances of military protections to allies such as Japan and South Korea, the United States reduces incentives for allied nations to launch nuclear weapons programs of their own. [emphasis added]

“For more than seventy years, the United States has helped to construct and maintain the institutions of global peace,” write the senators in the letter to President-elect Trump. “Among the most important of these institutions are defensive alliances such as NATO, as well as multilateral treaties comprising the nonproliferation regime. We urge you to affirm that the United States will continue to support these institutions.” 

A copy of the letter can be found HERE.

Senator Markey Statement on Passing of Senator John Glenn

As posted on the website of U.S. Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA):

Washington (December 8, 2016) – Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) released the following statement about the passing of astronaut and Senator John Glenn.

“John Glenn helped lift America’s gaze upwards to the constellation of possibilities – in space, in the halls of Congress, and in public life. From exploring the reaches of space, to working in the Senate for a nuclear weapons-free world, John Glenn was a hero for the entire planet. When I served in the House of Representatives, I was honored to work with him on Department of Energy oversight and nuclear nonproliferation. I am especially proud of having fought side-by-side – me in the House and him in the Senate – to try to stop the sale of nuclear material that contributed to a dangerous nuclear arms race between India and Pakistan. As a co-author of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Act, John Glenn understood that the spread of nuclear weapons was one of the greatest threats facing the world, and he was indefatigable in his efforts to ensure history was on the side of peace, not annihilation. He was an inspiration and a pioneer, and he represented the very best of this nation.” (emphasis added)

Stop new nuclear bomb – B61-12 – for Europe! Sign solidarity statement!

Marion Kuepker (GAAA, Gewaltfreie Aktion Atomwaffen Abschaffen, Germany's Non-violent Action for Abolition of Nuclear Weapons, of Hamburg, Germany) has released the following action alert, in partnership with IPPNW (International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War), and Nukewatch Wisconsin:

Mushroom cloud rising above Hiroshima, Japan on August 6, 1945 after U.S. dropped first atomic bomb on a city in history.Our campaign: "Büchel is everywhere - nuclear-free now!" Worldwide Solidarity, is calling for signatures of individuals internationally: please read on!

Please print up a hard copy of the U.S. solidarity statement, (or see handbill for other countries here) fill it out, and mail it to:

Nukewatch
740A Round Lake Road
Luck, WI 54853

or

GAAA c/o M. Küpker
Beckstr.14,
20357 Hamburg, Germany

See the English language website here.

Background Information

Stop new nuclear bomb -- B61-12 -- for Europe!

US citizens solidarity declaration needed -- strengthen the global network!

German campaign to send the existing US nukes back home, and to organize against the new B61-12 US nuclear bomb, which is planned to be built in the US by 2020 for five European countries (Italy, Belgium, Holland, Turkey and Germany):

Despite the end of the Cold War, about 20 US nuclear bombs are still deployed at a German Air Force Base named Büchel. German pilots will have to take off with these bombs in Tornado fighter planes when the order comes from the US president, through NATO (North American Treaty Organization), to drop them on their targets. This horrifying vision is part of the "nuclear sharing agreement" in NATO, with its nuclear detererence policy, and includes the first strike option.

These weapons of mass destruction – illegal under both German and international law -- are planned to be replaced by expensive (a $10 billion program), new, precision-guided nuclear weapons in the near future, through the National Nuclear Security Administration's (NNSA) nuclear weapons complex. All three national nuclear laboratories (the Y-12 Plant at Oak Ridge, Tennessee; the Kansas City Plant, in Kansas City, KS; and Sandia Lab in Albuquerque, NM) are part of B61-12 construction, mainly through Boeing (tailfin kit: $1.8 billion), Lockheed Martin, Honeywell and Bechtel. With about 400 B61-12 bombs to be refurbished for Europe, that’s about $25 million per bomb, calculated by expert Hans Kristensen, director of the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists. (See his June 15, 2011 article.)

(See also a November 5, 2015 PBS Newshour article, "Photos: What an $8 billion nuclear bomb upgrade looks like.")

20 weeks of action at the Büchel base

Twenty weeks for twenty bombs – starting again on March 26*, 2017 until August 9th, groups and individuals will hold vigils and other kinds of nonviolent direct action (blockades, trespassing, etc.) at the Büchel base to pressure the government, leading up to the next election in Germany in September, 2017.

(*26 March 2010 cross-party motion calling on the government to work towards a withdrawal of nuclear weapons!)

And for those who can take a further step:

Declaration of Commitment

Our German-wide campaign, "Büchel is everywhere – nuclear free now!“ is organized by 50 organizations/groups. The active presence at Büchel is planned to be the beginning of a long-term phase of action to prevent the nuclear upgrade. The core element of the campaign is our Declaration of Commitment signature campaign where people declare in public (on our website):

"I will come to Büchel once a year and take part in an action until nuclear weapons are withdrawn, and I will actively commit to seeking a nuclear weapons-free world in the place where I am living."

We also plan to have an international week of action in 2017. If you are interested in joining, please contact: mariongaaa@gmx.de, or via our website: www.buechel-atombombenfrei.de, and let us know about any support you might need. All kinds of housing, including camping opportunities, exists in this beautiful volcanic region. There will be an office and a contact person nearby.

In 2016 we had 20 weeks of actions with 45 religious, peace, women, anti-nuclear, and other groups participating.

Besides the Declaration of Commitment, we also have a Declaration of Solidarity especially for people who cannot come, but who want to show their full support (please see above: sign on the other side of the page, and mail it to one of the addresses provided).

In Germany, the peace movement always risks the possibility of being considered "anti-American." With plenty of signatures from the US peace & justice movement, we can show that we are united in our vision for a nuclear-free world – also with indigenous peoples and other people of color, who are disproportionally impacted by the nuclear production chain. We don't want new nuclear weapons, and we believe the money should go to the people's real needs!

INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE DISMISSES MARSHALL ISLANDS’ NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT CASES WITHOUT CONSIDERING THE MERITS

Rick Wayman of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation reports:

The International Court of Justice (ICJ), the world’s highest court, delivered its judgments on preliminary issues in the Marshall Islands’ nuclear disarmament cases against India, Pakistan and the United Kingdom (UK)...

Phon van den Biesen, Co-Agent of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, said, “We are pleased that the Court recited its unanimous decision of 1996 that there exists an obligation to pursue in good faith negotiations leading to nuclear disarmament in all its aspects. Likewise we are pleased that half of the judges of the highest court in the world confirmed, as the Marshall Islands alleged, that jurisdiction exists here. Nonetheless it is difficult to understand how eight judges could have found that no disputes existed in these cases when they were filed. So that is very disappointing. It is particularly worrying that the World Court cannot be unanimous on what it takes to establish a dispute in the context of nuclear disarmament.”...

David Krieger, President of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation and a consultant to the RMI, said, “In bringing these lawsuits, Tony de Brum and the Marshall Islands have demonstrated the courage and determination to act and speak, based on conviction and bitter, tragic experience, for the benefit of all humankind. De Brum and the Marshall Islands made the choice to act in a constructive manner to find a path to end the existential threat posed by nuclear weapons. With the lawsuits, the Marshall Islands challenged the nuclear-armed states to show good faith in meeting the universal legal obligation to pursue and conclude negotiations on complete nuclear disarmament. The Marshall Islands itself has shown good faith fulfilment of that obligation in a dignified, respectful way, through court action.”...

Official statement from the government of the Republic of the Marshall Islands:

“While these proceedings were initiated by a previous government administration, and have been carried forward, the Marshall Islands has - for decades - repeatedly reminded the international community that our own burden and experiences with nuclear detonation must never again be repeated - this includes Marshallese who petitioned the United Nations in 1954 and 1956 to cease the nuclear testing program during its status as a UN Trust Territory. Recent nuclear tests in North Korea are a stunning example of clearly unacceptable risks which remain with us all.  

While it may be that there are several political pathways to sharply reducing - and eliminating - nuclear risk, further progress on nuclear disarmament appears stalled. Without further flexibility and political will by all sides of the table, and with all necessary actors - and without common agreement on a way forward, it is as though there is no visible path to a world free of nuclear weapons, and the peace and security which accompany it. Such a lack of progress is no way to honor or respond to the lesson that Marshallese people have offered the world.

We look forward to studying closely the Court's opinion before commenting further.” More.

Native American land defender/water protector speaks truth to power at ND gubernatorial debate

As reported by Amy Goodman on Democracy Now! during the show's Oct. 4th news headlines segment (watch/listen from the 11 minute 43 second mark to the 13 minute 13 second mark), a Native American land defender/water protector (they do not want to be called protestors), opposed to the crude oil Dakota Access Pipeline threatening Standing Rock Sioux Tribe drinking water, ancient sacred and burial sites, etc., disrupted the North Dakota gubernatorial debate last evening.

She compared DAPL's violation of the 1851 treaty between the Sioux and U.S. government -- in the form of desecration of sacred and burial sites on historic tribal lands -- to violation of nuclear weapons treaties, such as the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Meanwhile, as reported by Goodman, Native American land defenders/water protectors in a large convoy of vehicles non-violently disrupted ongoing construction of the DAPL in North Dakota, as non-Indian protestors in Iowa engaged in non-violent direct action to stop DAPL construction there, resulting in multiple arrests.

Learn more about the Native-led DAPL resistance, and how you can help, at Beyond Nuclear's Human Rights website section.