Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament

The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament today welcomed the 'Global Zero' summit, to be held in London this Tuesday to Thursday (21st-23rd June). The Global Zero initiative indicates the increasing extent of the demand - from political, military and cultural leaders - for urgent action to achieve global nuclear disarmament. [See note 2]

The Summit will bring together over 100 leading members of Global Zero to discuss and debate with senior officials from several governments. They will undertake intensive policy discussions on how all nuclear weapons states can be brought to the table to negotiate multilateral nuclear arms reductions. They will also consider the strategy needed to build public and political support for this agenda.

The Summit will begin with the UK premiere of the critically acclaimed film, Countdown to Zero [note 3]. This, together with a panel discussion featuring Queen Noor of Jordan, ex-CIA operative Valerie Plame Wilson, former Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett and Oscar-winning producer Lawrence Bender, will be streamed live to around 50 cinemas and other venues throughout the UK. Many of the events are hosted by local anti-nuclear campaigners.

Kate Hudson, General Secretary of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, said, "This very welcome summit shows just how broad the demand for a world free of nuclear weapons now is. From President Obama down, political and military leaders are increasingly coming to accept that nuclear weapons can play no useful role in preserving security. In fact they do the reverse, with hundreds of missiles poised to launch at a moment's notice. Britain must play its part in supporting President Obama's initiatives and declaring itself ready to actualise its existing commitment to disarm, under the 1968 nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Our government already accepts Britain faces no state-on-state nuclear threat. Now is the time for the UK to rid itself of the city-destroying Trident missiles and back the negotiation of a nuclear weapons convention, banning nukes in the way that chemical and biological weapons are outlawed.

"Global Zero estimate that global spending on nuclear weapons will amount to $1,000bn this decade [see note 4] - a monstrous sum to be devoting to the maintenance of a system that does nothing to tackle the real insecurities facing humanity in the 21st century. The cost of building, let alone running the replacement for the UK's Trident submarines, has already increased from £11 to £25bn before detailed planning has even begun. Now is the time for our government to concentrate on real priorities and scrap its ruinously expensive nuclear weapons programme."

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1. For further information and interviews please contact CND's Press Officer on 020 7700 2350 or 07968 420859.
2. The Global Zero summit agenda is detailed at http://www.globalzero.org/en/page/london-summit-2011 with the organisers available on 020 7637 2780
3. For further details on Countdown to Zero see http://www.countdowntozerofilm.com or contact Phil Cairns or Emily Foat at Premier PR on 020 7292 8330
4. Global Zero briefing on the cost of nuclear weapons: http://www.globalzero.org/en/page/cost-of-nukes

This outlines the evidence that Israel possesses biological, chemical and nuclear weapons programmes, including tactical nuclear weapons, including the means to deliver them. It discusses the history of Israeli weapons programmes, including the support afforded by the US, Israel’s role in the militarization of space, the arms trade, and NATO’s relationship with Israel.

This briefing outlines the current impasse over Iran’s nuclear programme, as well as providing historical context. It describes the policy positions of key actors in the dispute, including the US, Iran, the EU-3 and the IAEA, and discusses the hypocritical positions of those opposing Iran’s nuclear programme in the light of their own policies on nuclear weapons. It calls for all parties to pursue peaceful negotiations towards a nuclear-free Middle East, and for existing nuclear powers’ obligations to eliminate their own arsenals to be enforced.

This leaflet outlines the possible role of a Nuclear Weapons Convention as a stepping stone to the outlawing of nuclear weapons worldwide. It draws parallels with similar conventions with regards to land-mines and chemical weapons, which led to bans on both these types of weapons. It discusses the work of campaigners to push for the adoption of a Convention, including the work of ICAN and the model Convention submitted to the United Nations in 1997.

This useful Q&A explains clearly why it is vital that a Nuclear Weapons Convention, a worldwide treaty to ban all nuclear weapons, is negotiated. It is has been written by the UK section of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, of which CND is a member.