Extinguishing Prometheus’ Nuclear Flame: International Day Against Nuclear Tests

By Tariq Rauf*

Collage of photos of the author in his IAEA capacity at the Semipalatinsk “polygon” on 29 August 2011, with ‘Stronger than Death’ monument in Semey in the centre. It was erected in 2001 in memory of the victims of nuclear testing at Semipalatinsk. Photos by Tariq Rauf.

VIENNA (IDN) – The first nuclear explosive device was detonated at the Alamogordo Test Range in the New Mexico desert in the United States of America on  July 16, 1945, and then on August 6 and 9 the US carried out the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In the next seven decades, nine additional countries carried out some 2060 nuclear explosions, spreading radioactive contamination in the air, lands and space, and in the world's oceans, leading to long-lasting catastrophic consequences for the health and well-being of millions of innocent people. [2020–08-29 | 13] JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF | MALAY

Looking Back at the Hiroshima and Nagasaki Nuclear Attacks on 75th Anniversary

Viewpoint by Tariq Rauf

Photo: Side view of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial. Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 2.5

The writer is former Head of Nuclear Verification and Security Policy at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna, former Alternate Head of the IAEA Delegation to the nuclear non-proliferation Treaty (NPT); Senior Advisor on nuclear disarmament to the Chairs at the 2015 NPT Review Conference and 2014 NPT PrepCom; long time Expert with Canada's NPT delegation until 2000. Personal views are expressed here. The following is an expanded version of comments made at the event, 'The 75th Anniversary of Atomic Bombing and the United Nations In the Time of COVID-19: Where Do We Stand and What Can Be Done for a Nuclear-Free World?', organized by the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) Hiroshima. [2020–08-06 | 12] JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF

Japanese and American Catholics Take on the Bomb

By Drew Christiansen

Writer Drew Christiansen, S. J., is Distinguished Professor of Ethics and Human Development at Georgetown University and a senior fellow at the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace and World Affairs. He is the co-editor with Carole Sargent of A World Free from Nuclear Weapons: The Vatican Conference on Disarmament (Georgetown University Press, 2020). facebook.com/disarmnowgeorgetown

WASHINGTON, DC. (IDN) -- Nagasaki is the historic centre of Japanese Catholicism. In the 16th century, beginning with the missionary visits of one of the first Jesuits, Francis Xavier, Nagasaki was the focal point of their efforts to bring Christianity to Japan. [2020–08-01 | 11] JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF | KOREAN | TURKISH

A Warrior for Nuclear Peace Dies But His Message Reverberates

Viewpoint by Jonathan Power*Photo: Bruce Blair. Credit: Matt Stanley, mattstanleyphoto.com

LUND, Sweden (IDN) – Bruce Blair, one of the great unsung heroes of the nuclear bomb age, died on July 19 at the age of 72. In his twenties he had been an intercontinental nuclear rocket launch officer, spending his days or nights deep down in a below-ground bunker waiting for the signal to fire and obliterate the cities and their people, the workers of all classes, pensioners and the totally innocent children of western Russia. [2020–07-28 | 10] ARABIC | JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF | THAI

Trump and Senator Cotton Embrace Enhanced Testing & Face Kilotons of Surprises

Viewpoint by Robert Kelley

VIENNA (IDN) – There are growing rumours that the United States is considering carrying out a nuclear test in the near future. Legislation introduced in the United States Senate suggests that this may not be an idle threat. The language in the recent amendment reads: “carry out projects related to reducing the time required to execute a nuclear test if necessary,” This threat indicates a complete lack of understanding of the political and technical difficulties such a move would introduce. [2020–07-14 | 09] HINDI | JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF

Okinawa Governor Refuses to Host Prohibited U.S. Nuclear Missiles

By Jaya Ramachandran

GENEVA (IDN) – Governor Denny Tamaki of Okinawa district has rejected the U.S. plans to base on the island missiles capable of threatening China – apparently as part of President Donald Trump's move to challenge Beijing and upgrade the importance of Taiwan, 500 kilometres away from the island. If a plan for Okinawa to host such missiles were to develop, Tamaki said: "I can easily imagine fierce opposition from Okinawa residents." [2020–06-27 | 08] JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF | RUSSIAN

Combating the Threat of Nuclear Weapons Needs 'Responsible' Media

 Viewpoint by Dr J. Enkhsaikhan

The writer is former Permanent Representative of Mongolia to the United Nations, and Chairman of Blue Banner NGO. 

ULAANBAATAR (IDN) – The first half of 2020 has demonstrated once again that the world has indeed become closely interconnected and that cooperation of states and other stakeholders is imperative to deal with the current three existential threats that know no borders: the existence of weapons of mass destruction, the climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic. [2020–06-26 | 07] JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF | NORWEGIAN

Time to Act on Dr King’s Call to Tackle Evils of Racism, Economic Exploitation, and War

Viewpoint by Alice Slater

Photo: Dr Martin Luther King, Jr., speaking against the Vietnam War, St. Paul Campus, the University of Minnesota in St. Paul, April 27, 1967. CC BY-SA 2.0. Wikimedia Commons.

The writer serves on the Board of 'World Beyond War', and represents the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation at the United Nations.

NEW YORK (IDN) –The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) just issued its 2020 Yearbook, reporting on developments in armaments, disarmament, and international security. In light of the drumbeat of frightening news about growing hostility between the dominant nuclear-armed states vying for power, SIPRI describes a bleak outlook for arms control. [2020–06-15 | 06] HINDI | ITALIAN | JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF | SPANISH

Eminent Persons Warn Against Any Demonstration Nuclear Test Explosion

By Reinhard Jacobsen

Image: More than 300 International Monitoring System (IMS) facilities certified out of the 337 the CTBTO has planned are already in operation. Credit: CTBTO.

VIENNA (IDN) – Members of the CTBTO Group of Eminent Persons (GEM) have expressed "deep concern about credible press reports" that senior U.S. officials have discussed the possibility of conducting "a demonstration nuclear test explosion". [2020–05-30 | 05] JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF | PORTUGUESE | SPANISH

Global Civil Society Demands Bolder Action from NPT States Parties

By Jamshed Baruah

Image credit: Pixabay

GENEVA (IDN) – A diverse network of national and international peace and nuclear disarmament non-governmental organisations has in a joint statement urged government leaders, particularly from the nuclear-armed states and their allies, to act with greater urgency and cooperation to meet unfulfilled promises to reduce nuclear risks and advance progress on disarmament, and to realise their commitment to the “complete elimination of nuclear weapons”. The statement coincided with the 25th anniversary on May 11 of the indefinite extension of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). [2020–05-12 | 04] ARABIC | GERMAN | HINDI | JAPANESE TEXT VERSION PDF | THAI