Arms Control Today articles from July 2006

Arms Control Today archives from July 2006

Editor's note.
July 1, 2006... Virtually everyone agrees that the strategic environment has changed since the end of the Cold War and the terrorist attacks of September 11 and that countries, particularly the United States, need to alter their weapons arsenals to account for...

Next stop: the NSG.(Nuclear Suppliers Group )
July 1, 2006... Within months, the 45-member Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) will move from the periphery to the center of a year-long debate about whether India should become eligible for full civil nuclear trade even though it does not yet observe the...

Notable quotable.(Joseph Martz)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... "I have had people working nights and weekends. I have to tell them to go home. I can't keep them out of the office. This is a chance to exercise skills that we have not had a chance to use for 20 years." --Joseph Martz, head of the Los...

On future cuts to the U.S. nuclear arsenal.(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... Steep arms reductions, combined with a nuclear test ban and agreements on a cutoff of production of fissionable materials for weapons, would put the United States in a far stronger position to argue for similar constraints on nuclear weapons...

By the numbers.(nuclear weapons)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... North Korea's Missile and Nuclear Arsenals 5,800 & 9,400 Approximate distances in kilometers from North Korea to Anchorage and to Los Angeles 1,300* Estimated range in kilometers of Nodong ballistic missile 1,000-2,000*...

Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons, Protocol V.(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... On May 12, Albania, Liechtenstein, and Switzerland consented to be bound by Protocol V of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons, which involves explosive remnants left behind in conflict areas. Tajikistan did the same on May 18. With...

Ottawa Convention.(anti-personnel landmines)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... The Standing Committee on the General Status and Operation of the 1997 Ottawa Convention banning anti-personnel landmines (APLs) met in Geneva on May 8 and May 12. The committee discussed issues relating to universalization, resource...

Proliferation Security Initiative.(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... As part of the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI), nearly 40 countries gathered in Turkey on May 24-26 to participate in interdiction training. Of the 22 such exercises held since 2003, it was the first to be hosted by Turkey. The training...

International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism.(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... India has agreed to join a UN convention against nuclear terrorism. India's cabinet gave its approval on June 16 for signing and ratifying the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism, a measure designed to...

U.S. Senate.(Comings and Goings)
July 1, 2006... The U.S. Senate has confirmed General Michael Hayden as the 20th director of the Central Intelligence Agency.

Goldman Sachs.(Robert Zoellick appointed)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick announced he is leaving his post to join investment house Goldman Sachs as a managing director. President George W. Bush has not yet named a replacement.

Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has named Assistant Secretary of Defense for Legislative Affairs.(Powell Moore)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has named Assistant Secretary of Defense for Legislative Affairs Powell Moore as his representative to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe based in Vienna. Moore replaces Ambassador David...

National Nuclear Security Administration.(Comings and Goings)
July 1, 2006... Jerry Paul has announced he will resign from his position as principal deputy administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration effective early August.

National Nuclear Security Administration head Linton Brooks has announced the appointment of George Allen as director of its new Office of Transformation.(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... National Nuclear Security Administration head Linton Brooks has announced the appointment of George Allen as director of its new Office of Transformation, which will focus on modernizing the U.S. nuclear weapons complex. Previously, Allen was a...

On the calendar.(What's Ahead)
July 1, 2006... July 15-17 G-8 Summit, St. Petersburg. July 16 The 61st anniversary of "Trinity," the first nuclear explosion. Alamogordo, New Mexico. July 31-Sept. 15 Conference on Disarmament: 3rd session, Geneva....

Off target? The Bush administration's plan to arm long-range ballistic missiles with conventional warheads.
July 1, 2006... Early this year, the Pentagon formally unveiled a plan to equip some of the Navy's submarine-launched Trident D-5 nuclear missiles with conventional warheads. These conventionally armed, long-range ballistic missiles would be deployed under the...

Reviving disarmament: an interview with Hans Blix.(Interview)
July 1, 2006... Hans Blix for the last two years has served as chairman of the WMD Commission, an independent international body launched by the Swedish government to explore ways to reduce threats posed by biological, chemical, and nuclear weapons. Blix, who...

BWC 2006: building transparency through Confidence Building Measures.(Biological Weapons Convention)
July 1, 2006... Transparency is an integral component of arms control. It can dispel concerns of noncompliance by reassuring actors that others are not misusing technologies or goods for hostile purposes. It can also deter actors from engaging in banned...

Nonproliferation diplomacy: an interview with Ambassador Gregory L. Schulte.(Interview)
July 1, 2006... As U.S. permanent representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and other Vienna-based organizations, Ambassador Gregory L. Schulte has been deeply involved in U.S. efforts to limit Iran's nuclear program, develop a series of...

U.S., allies await Iran's response to nuclear offer.
July 1, 2006... On June 6, six countries, including the United States, offered a new package of incentives and disincentives to Iran designed to persuade it to end its gas centrifuge-based uranium-enrichment program. As the month ended, Tehran was still...

IAEA Iran investigation makes little headway.(International Atomic Energy Agency )
July 1, 2006... A June 8 report from International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director-General Mohamed ElBaradei to the agency's Board of Governors indicates that Iran has continued to defy a March UN Security Council presidential statement urging Tehran to...

Iraq strives to join chemical weapons pact.
July 1, 2006... More than three years after the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, Baghdad is apparently making progress in its efforts to accede to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC). But the fate of the UN organization charged with dismantling Iraq's chemical...

U.S.-Indian deal clears congressional hurdles.
July 1, 2006... Key lawmakers gave their initial blessing at the end of June to a Bush administration initiative to expand civilian nuclear commerce with India, but reserved final judgment pending completion of detailed terms governing such trade. U.S. and...

Senate backs Bush's Iran approach.(George W. Bush)
July 1, 2006... The Senate June 15 gave a unanimous blessing to President George W. Bush's diplomatic approach toward Iran. At the same time, lawmakers more narrowly beat back a measure that would have tightened sanctions aimed at curbing progress in Tehran's...

U.S. sanctions five companies for Iran trade.
July 1, 2006... The United States June 13 cited one U.S. and four Chinese companies as allegedly assisting Iranian ballistic missile programs. Any entities doing business with these designated companies risk having their U.S. assets frozen. The recent...

An end to U.S. tactical nuclear weapons in Europe?
July 1, 2006... NATO's policy of basing U.S. tactical nuclear weapons in several European countries has lasted long after the end of the Cold War, despite increasing pressure from parliamentarians, disarmament advocates, and public opinion. Now, a more mundane...

Plans for missile defenses in Europe unsettled.
July 1, 2006... U.S. plans for establishing a strategic ballistic missile defense base in Europe remain unsettled, but Russian officials are sharpening their criticism of the proposal. Meanwhile, leaders of the 26-member NATO alliance will soon begin weighing...

European conventional arms treaty in limbo.(EUROPE AND THE FORMER SOVIET UNION)
July 1, 2006... Nearly seven years ago, 30 countries agreed on a revised set of European conventional arms limits to replace caps originally negotiated when the Soviet Union existed and Europe was divided into two hostile military blocs. Yet, the outdated...

U.S., Russia extend threat reduction authority.
July 1, 2006... The United States and Russia have renewed until 2013 an agreement governing U.S. programs to help Russia secure and eliminate its excess unconventional arms and nuclear materials. The extension occurred June 16, on the eve of the agreement's...

IAEA, leading nations push for fuel assurances.
July 1, 2006... High-level delegations from 140 countries will meet in Vienna Sept. 19-20 in an attempt to encourage countries to forgo two critical technologies that could lead to nuclear weapons while ensuring that they receive civilian nuclear fuel. The...

Nuclear suppliers still split on U.S.-Indian deal.
July 1, 2006... The world's leading nuclear supplier states remain divided on a U.S. initiative to exempt India from international rules restricting civilian nuclear trade with New Delhi. The 45 members of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) also are at odds on...

Efforts to strengthen IAEA safeguards advance.(International Atomic Energy Agency)
July 1, 2006... International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director-General Mohamed ElBaradei told the agency's Board of Governors June 12 that a committee formed last year "has begun considering" ways of improving IAEA safeguards. ElBaradei also described the...

Potential North Korean missile test raises tension.
July 1, 2006... Reports in June that North Korea was on the verge of testing its first longer-range ballistic missile since 1998 set countries around the region on edge. Meanwhile, six-party talks concerning the North Korean nuclear crisis remain stalled. ...

U.S., allies end North Korea reactor project.
July 1, 2006... The Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization's (KEDO) executive board announced June 1 that it had formally terminated its project to build a light-water nuclear reactor in North Korea. The organization's executive board, which is...

Book review: unmasking a Culture of Death.(Deadly Cultures: Biological Weapons Since 1945)(Book review)
July 1, 2006... Deadly Cultures: Biological Weapons Since 1945 Edited by Mark Wheelis, Lajos Rozsa, and Malcolm Dando Harvard University Press, 2006, 496 pp. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Deadly Cultures: Biological Weapons Since 1945 is a significant...

Nuclear First Strike: Consequences of a Broken Taboo.(Brief article)(Book review)
July 1, 2006... Nuclear First Strike: Consequences of a Broken Taboo By George H. Quester. The John Hopkins University Press, February 2006, 155 pp. In a detailed analysis, George H. Quester explores what might happen if nuclear weapons were used for...

Impossible Allies: Nuclear India, United States and the Global Order.(Brief article)(Book review)
July 1, 2006... Impossible Allies: Nuclear India, United States and the Global Order. By C. Raja Mohan. India Research Press, May 2006, 311 pp. From the perspective of an Indian journalist and academic, C. Raja Mohan offers a comprehensive overview of...

Negotiating Minefields: The Landmines Ban in American Politics.(Brief article)(Book review)
July 1, 2006... Negotiating Minefields: The Landmines Ban in American Politics By Leon V. Sigal. Routledge, March 2006, 294 pp. Former Department of State official Leon V. Sigal provides a historical and detailed view of what he terms the...