평화군축센터 미분류 2009-09-29   739

Working towards a Nuclear Weapon Free World



Can we look forward to seeing the Changed America?


It was a noticeable event that the UN Security Council(UNSC) unanimously passed a resolution emphasizing the elimination of nuclear weapons today(Sep. 24). First off, the US showed a changed attitude. Korean press emphasized that the UN Security Council and the Resolution 1887 warned North Korea and Iran. However, that is a part of the fact.


This was only the fifth in the UNSC’s history to be held at the level of heads of State and government, and it was the first time to adopt nuclear disarmament as an agenda. Obama, the US President, not only chaired the meeting but also drafted the Resolution 1887. The Resolution 1887 and remarks of the summits showed progress in nuclear disarmament. The UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon said that “nothing would work better in eliminating the risk of use than eliminating the weapons themselves” while evaluating that “the summit was an historic event that has opened a new chapter in the Council’s efforts to address nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation.”


Mr. Obama said that “just one nuclear weapon exploded in a city could kill hundreds of thousands of people” as emphasizing that “nations with nuclear weapons have a responsibility to move toward disarmament and those without them have the responsibility to forsake them.” Moreover, he stated that “we will pursue a new agreement with Russia to substantially reduce our strategic warheads and launchers”, and “we will move forward with ratificaton of the Test Ban Treaty, and work with others to bring the treaty into force so that nuclear testing is permanently prohibited. We will complete a Nuclear Psture Review that opens the door to deeper cuts and reduces the role of nuclear weapons.”


It is welcoming to notice the change of the US, which has opposed to the UN resolutions of nuclear disarmament on vote. The former Bush government continued to oppose to resolutions about nuclear disarmament, FMCT, decreasing the operational readiness of nuclear weapons systems, NSA(Negative Security Assurance). It neither ratified the CTBT, not supported establishment of nuclear weapon free zones. Although the US was the only country that used nuclear weapons in reality but also the biggest nuclear weapon possessor with Russia, it has been the greatest obstacle to nuclear disarmament.


Obama stated that “international law is not an empty promise and treaties must be enforced.” Russia highlighted “the unprecedented reductions of stratefic nuclear arsenals by Russian and the US”. China’s President, Hu Jintao stated that “removing the threat of nuclear war is vitial to realizing a safer world for all.”


The reason behind the unsatisfactory progress of nuclear disarmament is the unyielding attitude of nuclear-haves. Even worse, they did not exclude the threat of use of nuclear weapons. At the same time, fissile materials and nuclear weapon technologies have become proliferated and the number of countries who possess nuclear weapons outside the NPT regime has been increasing. The five nuclear powers’ response to the attempts of other countries to pursue nuclear deterrence as a security means were not consistent. It caused controversies on the responsibilities for the failure of nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation and double standards.


While the Cold War based on the nuclear deterrence, the storage of nuclear weapons has been rising. According to SIPRI(Stockholm International Peace Research Institute), there are 23,300 nuclear weapons and more than 2000 nuclear tests around the world while accumulating 1,379t HEU(Highly Enriched Uranium) and 225t separated plutonium for military purpose. These figures proves that Nuclear Weapon Free World is the task for the world to pursue without giving up.


Of course, implementing nuclear disarmament is not as easy as saying. Certain social groups preferring nuclear armament and non-confidence among countries could hinder nuclear disarmament. Although Obama declared the Nuclear Weapon Free World, it is difficult to anticipate that Obama pursues the world as a nuclear weapon free zone prohibiting production, deployment and use of nuclear weapons. Nevertheless, the changed attitude of the US to lead nuclear disarmament is certainly an encouraging, positive signal.
 
Obama government’s determination for nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation will influence on the Korean Peninsula including the nuclear issue of North Korea. It is worth of noticing that the Japanese Democratic party, which taking the government lately, declared the nuclear weapon free Northeast Asia.


The South Korean society, which has focused on the development of nuclear weapon by North Korea with so called ‘nuclear fatigue of North Korea’, is time to pay attention on nuclear disarmament of the international society, and review the blind faith in the nuclear deterrence. While demanding North Korea abandon nuclear weapon development, the South Korean government also should abandon its negative attitude against nuclear disarmament because of its heavy reliance on the nuclear umbrella from the US.

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