Annie Jacobsen, Nuclear War: A Scenario, Transworld, London, 2024. “Nuclear war is insane,” writes Annie Jacobsen in her best-selling non-fiction thriller, Nuclear War: A Scenario. Jacobson interviewed more than 40 retired military officers and civilian professionals directly involved in planning and preparations for nuclear war, including a former Secretary of Defense. “Every person I interviewed…
“Signing” a treaty is simply making a commitment to follow through with ratification. “Ratifying” a treaty means that its terms become legally binding in the ratifying country. “Joining” a treaty may imply signing and/or ratifying, while “embracing” a treaty implies a form of support that falls short of signing or ratifying it. When it comes…
Inside the Doomsday Machine: The Deterrence Summit by Vicki Elson Image Description: The 2023 Deterrence Summit was attended by 530 representatives from the federal government, the military, Congress, the White House, and corporate contractors. Across the street, protesters reminded conference-goers that their product is now illegal in the 68* countries (so far) that have ratified…
Photo by Darren Ornitz | ICAN. Youth Movement It was an honor to join the hundreds of civil society activists in New York for the Second Meeting of States Parties (2MSP) to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons that took place during Nuclear Ban Week–the last week of November. The movement and campaign…
We can safely abolish all nuclear weapons Been hearing about the Oppenheimer movie? Oscar buzz! Barbenheimer! Cillian Murphy’s alarmingly blue eyeballs! In all the hoo-hah, two crucial things are missing. 1. We have to fully grasp the humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons: The movie offers only the tiniest hint about what happened to hundreds…
PHOTO: Canva Why Talk About Nuclear Disarmament Now? As we watch the horrors in Ukraine unfold, many of us have nuclear war on our minds, and rightly so. Is this the beginning of the end of the world? What if Putin, backed into a corner, unleashes the most dangerous weapon ever invented, and the US…
NuclearBan.US calls for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine and for negotiations leading to a peaceful solution to the present crisis, taking into consideration the wider security needs of all the parties involved, including Russia. The illegal and potentially disastrous invasion of Ukraine by Russia closely follows the pattern of recent illegal and disastrous invasions of…
September 21, 2020: More than fifty former world leaders have signed a letter released today, in support of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, or Nuclear Ban Treaty. The former leaders and ministers, from 22 NATO members as well as from Japan and South Korea, state that their countries, by claiming protection from…
Why isn’t anyone challenging the withdrawal? US Presidents cannot just go around creating their own ‘emergencies’ to get what they want. President Trump’s attempt to use emergency funding to build his wall will certainly be challenged in the US courts. But what about his withdrawal two weeks ago from one of the most important treaties…
This coming Sunday, February 25th, at 8pm South Korean time, athletes and fans from across the globe will gather at the Pyeongchang Stadium for the final closing ceremony of the 2018 Winter Olympics. The theme for this closing ceremony is ‘the human spirit of perseverance’. Songs will be sung and tears will be shed as…