Abolition of Nuclear Weapons

Introduction

A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission or a combination of fission and fusion. Both reactions release vast quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter; a modern thermonuclear weapon weighing little more than a thousand kilograms can produce an explosion comparable to the detonation of more than a billion kilograms of conventional high explosive.

Thus, even single small nuclear devices no larger than traditional bombs can devastate an entire city by blast, fire and radiation. Nuclear weapons are considered weapons of mass destruction, and their use and control has been a major focus of international relations policy since their debut.

History

In the history of warfare, only two nuclear weapons have been detonated offensively, both near the end of World War II. The first was detonated on the morning of 6 August 1945, when the United States dropped uranium gun-type device code-named "Little Boy" on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. The second was detonated three days later when the United States dropped a plutonium implosion-type device code-named "Fat Man" on the city of Nagasaki, Japan. These bombings resulted in the immediate deaths of around 120,000 people (mostly civilians) from injuries sustained from the explosion and acute radiation sickness, and even more deaths from long-term effects of ionizing radiation. The use of these weapons was and remains controversial.( Wildenstein, 4)

Discussion

Such initiatives were both caused by and resulted in the emergence of a new breed of nuclear abolitionists. Apart from the voices of influential individuals, particularly retired officials, who questioned the wisdom of retaining nuclear weapons, several countries and non-governmental organisations too rallied for a nuclear-weapons -free-world (NWFW). At the 1995 NPT Conference, a Study Group of the International Network of Engineers and Scientists against Proliferation (INESAP), comprising 50 experts from 17 countries, presented a report that outlined the transformation of the traditional non-proliferation regime into an NWFW regime. At the same time, more than 200 NGOs signed a statement that then became the basis for the founding of Abolition 2000 Global Network in the Hague in November 1995.

The same month, the Australian government instituted the Canberra Commission on the Elimination of Nuclear Weapons to study the desirability and feasibility of nuclear disarmament and to propose practical steps towards an NWFW. The Commission's members included 17 former political leaders, military commanders and defense experts on nuclear weapons. Its 1996 report concluded that “the risks of retaining nuclear arsenals far outweigh any possible benefit imputed to nuclear deterrence,” and “the end of the Cold War has created a new climate for international action to eliminate nuclear weapons, a new opportunity. It must be exploited quickly or it will be lost.” The report proposed both legal measures and practical steps towards an NWFW, as well as ways to maintain stability and security during the transitional period and beyond.( George, A13)

In another very significant initiative, a coalition of eight international NGOs formed the Middle Powers Initiative in March 1998 to encourage ...