22 February 2010

Obama’s Commitment

 

In Prague President Obama affirmed his determination to work toward the elimination of nuclear weapons.

In Prague President Obama affirmed his determination to work toward the elimination of nuclear weapons.

By Ellen O. Tauscher

Other people have talked about achieving a world without nuclear weapons. President Obama is trying to make it happen. Ellen O. Tauscher is under secretary of state for arms control and international security. This article appears in the February 2010 issue of eJournal USA, A World Free of Nuclear Weapons.

In Prague last April, President Obama set forth an ambitious and bold agenda: to achieve the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons. Other presidents have articulated that goal, but President Obama has made clear that he will aggressively work toward it.

Achieving a nuclear-free world, the president said, would take patience and persistence and might not happen in his lifetime. The journey, however, can be as important as the destination. Concrete steps we take now will make us safer and more secure by enhancing international security and stability and will help build a foundation for future steps.

As one of the two nations with the most nuclear weapons, we — the United States — acknowledge and embrace our responsibility to lead the way in reducing the numbers and salience of nuclear weapons.

Meanwhile, we will maintain a safe, secure, and reliable nuclear arsenal. We will never waver in our commitment to defend ourselves, our allies, and our interests, and any adversary should know we will defend ourselves and punish aggression.

As Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said, clinging to nuclear weapons in excess of our security needs does not make the United States safer. Holding onto unnecessary weapons does not make us more secure. It makes others feel insecure. It could give some countries an excuse to pursue nuclear weapons, and it makes it tougher for us to convince others to join us in preventing that.

U.S. and Russia

Our journey toward a world free of nuclear weapons already has begun. The United States and Russia — the two countries with the largest nuclear weapons arsenals — are working to negotiate a legally binding agreement to succeed the bilateral 1991 START Treaty. That agreement, which capped the number of those weapons, expired in December 2009.

The new treaty will enhance our mutual security and international stability by mandating lower, verifiable levels of nuclear forces.

The Obama administration also will ask the Senate to ratify the 1996 Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (PDF, 8.3MB) (CTBT). We do so because the CTBT can make us safer and more secure. We know this because our superb scientists working in the Stockpile Stewardship Program have honed their technological skills to the point that we no longer need to test nuclear weapons.

In addition, President Obama said that the United States will pursue negotiation of a verifiable Fissile Material Cutoff Treaty. The world already has a surplus of nuclear bomb-making materials — we don’t need more that we have to worry about protecting from terrorists.

In May, the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference will seek a consensus among NPT parties to revitalize and strengthen the nonproliferation regime. In plain language that means that every nation — nuclear power or not — must play an important role in curbing the spread of dangerous technologies and standing united against those who violate international norms and agreements.

President Obama is taking action to focus attention on nuclear terrorism. He has called for an international effort to secure all vulnerable nuclear material within four years by breaking up black markets, detecting and intercepting materials in transit, and using financial tools to disrupt illicit trade.

Nuclear Summit

In September 2009, President Obama chaired a special session of the United Nations Security Council. It adopted U.N. Resolution 1887, outlining comprehensive steps to strengthen the nuclear nonproliferation regime. The president also announced that he would host a Nuclear Security Summit in April 2010 to reach a common understanding of the threat posed by nuclear terrorism.

Meanwhile, we are conducting a Nuclear Posture Review of our strategic forces. It will fundamentally reassess the role of nuclear weapons in deterring today’s security threats. It can be the document that ends Cold War thinking.

To enhance our own national security, the review should chart a course that reduces the role of nuclear weapons in our military and diplomatic strategies while maintaining an effective deterrent as long as these weapons exist.

There are times when proliferation looks inevitable, when it seems that cascades of countries and non-state actors might acquire nuclear weapons or material. Yet proliferation can be curbed and stopped.

We have had significant success. More than 180 countries have foresworn nuclear weapons. More countries have given up or been denied nuclear weapons programs than have acquired them over the past 40 years.

But we also know that the consequences of another state or of terrorists acquiring these horribly destructive weapons are severe and that we cannot let down our guard. That’s why nonproliferation, nuclear security, and arms control are at the top of the Obama administration’s national security agenda.