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551. The Pugwash Newsletter: To the Pugwash Community

Publication Date:
07-2007
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs
Abstract:
Celebrations in honor of the 50th anniversary of the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs are occurring around the world in 2007. National groups from Denmark to Russia, Sri Lanka to the United States, and Spain to Japan, are organizing events to commemorate the very first meeting, held in July 1957 at the home of Cyrus Eaton in Pugwash, Nova Scotia, and to remind the world of the ever-present threat posed by nuclear weapons.
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, Security, Arms Control and Proliferation, and Nuclear Weapons
Political Geography:
Russia, Japan, Iraq, Middle East, Denmark, and Spain

552. The UK Contribution to the G8 Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons of Mass Destruction, 2002-06

Author:
Paul Cornish
Publication Date:
01-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Chatham House
Abstract:
The G8 Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction was established at the G8 summit meeting in Kananaskis, Canada in June 2002. The Kananaskis summit produced a new prescription for international cooperation in non-proliferation. The 'ten plus ten over ten' formula was intended to provide the means for tighter control over chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) weapons and materials, initially in Russia and then elsewhere, and particularly to prevent terrorist acquisition of such devices and technologies. In the founding document of the Global Partnership, the 'Statement by G8 Leaders', the following were listed as 'among our priority concerns': the destruction of chemical weapons; the dismantlement of decommissioned nuclear submarines; the disposal of fissile materials; and finding alternative employment for former weapons scientists. The UK government had been contributing to work in this field for several years before Kananaskis, and has been a leading participant in the G8 Global Partnership since its inception.
Topic:
Nuclear Weapons, Weapons of Mass Destruction, and International Security
Political Geography:
Russia, United States, Japan, United Kingdom, Europe, Canada, and Asia

553. Nuclear Weapons: The Politics of Non-Proliferation

Author:
Christine Wing
Publication Date:
04-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Peace Institute
Abstract:
Questions related to nuclear weapons are highly contested in the international arena—including the question of how these weapons constitute a challenge to human and international security. Does the challenge exist mainly in the incorporation of these weapons into military doctrines, or in the possibility that more states and/or terrorists will acquire nuclear capabilities? Have nuclear weapons and nuclear deterrence prevented major wars, or are they ultimately destabilizing—or could both be true?
Topic:
Nuclear Weapons, Peace Studies, Weapons of Mass Destruction, International Security, and International Affairs

554. Origins of the United States-India Nuclear Agreement

Author:
Itty Abraham
Publication Date:
05-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
East-West Center
Abstract:
Relations between the world's largest democracy, India, and the oldest, the United States, have never been better. The preeminent sign of this improved state of relations is, of course, the recent concord between the governments of both countries that proposes bilateral cooperation on a variety of fronts, from space to agriculture, but especially in relation to civilian nuclear cooperation. Bilateral agreements signed in July 2005 in Washington, D.C., and following President Bush's visit to India in March 2006,1 were hailed as historic, seemingly marking the end of “estrangement,” to borrow Ambassador Dennis Kux's characterization of relations between the two countries. But for all its claims to be “historic,” the agreements were not greeted equally, or with equal acclaim, in both capitals.
Topic:
Nuclear Weapons, Treaties and Agreements, and Weapons of Mass Destruction
Political Geography:
United States, South Asia, and India

555. From Alamogordo to Reliable Replacement Warheads

Author:
Leo A. Grünfeld and Francesca Sanna-Randaccio
Publication Date:
12-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Norwegian Institute of International Affairs
Abstract:
The paper discusses three important legacies that the first nuclear age, that of the Cold War, left behind: (1) the recurrent attempts at threat inflation and the corresponding politics of fear; (2) enormous stocks of poorly protected weapons and fissile materials; and (3) a vision of a world free of nuclear weapons. It goes on to explain the characteristics of the second nuclear age, a notion that Paul Bracken introduced after the testing in South Asia in 1998. Finally, it discusses two basic conditions for the international non-proliferation regime to function effectively: leadership and compatibility with the distribution of power in the international system. The latter is primarily about the rise of Asia in international affairs.
Topic:
International Cooperation and Nuclear Weapons
Political Geography:
United States and Asia

556. Megaton nuclear underground tests and catastrophic events on Novaya Zemlya

Author:
Johnny Skorve
Publication Date:
01-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Norwegian Institute of International Affairs
Abstract:
During the first NUPI study of the Novaya Zemlya underground nuclear test site in 1991–92, much information was generated. This relates both to facilities and testing activities. One of the most important discoveries made was the enormous catastrophic rockslide caused by an underground test. In recent years, new information has become available also from Russian sources. Declassified US satellite imagery made it possible for NUPI to study in more detail the effects of the powerful underground nuclear tests on Novaya Zemlya. This report contains the most pivotal discoveries and findings during the three years of studying this arctic test site.
Topic:
Development, Nuclear Weapons, and Science and Technology
Political Geography:
Russia and United States

557. Thoughts on the Day After

Author:
Michael May
Publication Date:
04-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Center for International Security and Cooperation
Abstract:
This note consists of some observations on the “Day After, ” or perhaps “Minutes to Months After” that I thought might be useful. They are derived from work done in the past few years, in part for DHS and its predecessor agencies. That work included observing and providing comments on the Topoff 2 Federal-State-Local coordination exercise of 2002-2003. These notes also derive from a workshop we did in 2002 that brought together first responders, media and scientists to discuss the aftermath of a nuclear explosion in the SF Bay Area. I make no attempt at being comprehensive but note a few things that, in our experience, have not seemed obvious to all participants. The notes are divided into two parts, “Response and Recovery” and “Political Reaction”.
Topic:
Security, Nuclear Weapons, Science and Technology, and Weapons of Mass Destruction
Political Geography:
San Francisco

558. Force and Restraint in Strategic Deterrence: A Game-Theorist's Perspective

Author:
Roger B. Myerson
Publication Date:
11-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Strategic Studies Institute of the U.S. Army War College
Abstract:
In a dangerous world, we need to think very carefully about how military force is used. Game theory can serve us in such analyses by providing a framework for probing the inextricable connections between our adversaries' decision problems and our own. To illustrate the power of game theory, the author focuses on a vital question that confronts American policymakers today: What determines why an application of military force, which was intended to deter potential adversaries, sometimes instead stimulates them to more militant reactions against us? When we feel that force is necessary, what can we do to minimize the risk of such adverse reactions?
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Nuclear Weapons, War, and Weapons of Mass Destruction
Political Geography:
America

559. Nuclear Weapons: The Challenges Ahead

Author:
Christine Wing
Publication Date:
04-2007
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Center on International Cooperation
Abstract:
Questions related to nuclear weapons are highly contested in the international arena—including the question of how these weapons constitute a challenge to human and international security. Does the challenge exist mainly in the incorporation of these weapons into military doctrines, or in the possibility that more states and/or terrorists will acquire nuclear capabilities? Have nuclear weapons and nuclear deterrence prevented major wars, or are they ultimately destabilizing—or could both be true?
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, International Cooperation, Nuclear Weapons, and War

560. Uranium for India: avoiding the pitfalls

Author:
Ron Walker
Publication Date:
05-2007
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Lowy Institute for International Policy
Abstract:
The prospect of Australia's selling uranium to India offers major potential benefits both for our exports and our foreign policy. There is however a conundrum as to how this could be done in a way that advances rather than damages Australia's interest in the global enterprise to resist the spread of nuclear weapons and in a rules-based international order.
Topic:
International Relations, Security, and Nuclear Weapons
Political Geography:
India and Asia