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International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons comes at a historic moment of brinkmanship

How Many Nuclear Weapons Exist? U.N.Calls for Total Elimination of Nukes https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/how-many-nuclear-weapons-exist-united-nations-calls-total-elimination-n804721, by CHELSEA BAILEY, 25 Sept 17  As a hot war between the U.S. and North Korea over Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons aspirations appeared to inch closer to reality, the United Nations’ fourth annual International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapon comes at a historic moment of brinkmanship.

North Korea’s foreign minister, Ri Yong Ho, said Monday that President Donald Trump had “declared war” on his country and that it had the right to shoot down U.S. bombers. Ri cited a tweet by Trump on Friday threatening the annihilation of Kim Jong Un’s regime. The White House rejected that it had declared war on North Korea, calling the claim “absurd.”

With that war of words and North Korea’s claim of a successful hydrogen bomb test this month as a backdrop, the United Nations again pressed for the end of nuclear weapons worldwide and specifically called on Trump and Kim to end the volley of threats.

“The prevailing security challenges cannot be an excuse for continued reliance on nuclear weapons and for abrogating our shared responsibility to seek a more peaceful international society,” U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a statement.

As North Korea seeks to join the community of nuclear armed nations, this is what’s known about the current state of nuclear arsenals around the world.

How many nuclear weapons are there?

Since the Cold War ended, nuclear-armed countries have significantly reduced the number of weapons from more than 70,000 in 1986 to nearly 15,000 in 2017, according to FAS.

The U.S. and Russia own and control 93 percent of all nuclear warheads in the world, according to the watchdog. Although the vast majority of weapons are either stockpiled or retired, FAS currently estimates that the U.S. has 1,800 nuclear weapons at the ready, compared to Russia’s 1,950.

The remaining nuclear-armed states hold only a few hundred weapons.

Hans Kristensen, director of the Nuclear Information Project at FAS, said there’s still a great deal of work to be done to reduce nuclear stockpiles. Kristensen said he believes both the U.S. and Russia are continuing to create and store weapons in an attempt to compete with each other.

“Clearly there is a special responsibility on the part of the U.S. and Russia to continue to draw down their weapons,” he said. “It is an enormous overkill and vastly in excess of what we need for national security and international commitments.”

What’s being done to reduce nuclear weapons?

On Sept. 20, more than 50 U.N. member states signed the first legally binding international treaty to prohibit the use of nuclear weapons. The document, called the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, represents a historic step in the decades-long crusade to rid the world of nuclear weapons — but not a single nuclear-armed state signed the treaty.

But that doesn’t mean other armed nations aren’t also working to reduce their global nuclear arsenal.

Hans Kristensen, director of the Nuclear Information Project at FAS, said there’s still a great deal of work to be done to reduce nuclear stockpiles. Kristensen said he believes both the U.S. and Russia are continuing to create and store weapons in an attempt to compete with each other.

“Clearly there is a special responsibility on the part of the U.S. and Russia to continue to draw down their weapons,” he said. “It is an enormous overkill and vastly in excess of what we need for national security and international commitments.”

What’s being done to reduce nuclear weapons?

On Sept. 20, more than 50 U.N. member states signed the first legally binding international treaty to prohibit the use of nuclear weapons. The document, called the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, represents a historic step in the decades-long crusade to rid the world of nuclear weapons — but not a single nuclear-armed state signed the treaty.

But that doesn’t mean other armed nations aren’t also working to reduce their global nuclear arsenal.

But he also inherited from the Obama administration a commitment to modernize the U.S. nuclear program. Kristensen said he believes that that will form the basis of Trump’s approach to the U.S. nuclear program.

In January, Trump directed the secretary of defense to begin a review of the country’s nuclear posture. That process officially began in April, and a final report will be issued at the end of the year, according to the Pentagon.

What about North Korea?

There are no concrete estimates on the number of nuclear warheads in North Korea, but Kristensen and other analysts agree that Kim Jong Un’s regime has produced enough nuclear fissile material to arm and assemble a ballistic missile.

“They’re making progress,” Kristensen said. “And if they don’t already have the capability to launch a nuclear weapon, they will certainly have it in the near future.”

Related: U.S. Has Discussed Nuclear Weapons in South Korea

Kristensen estimates that Kim could have from 20 to 40 nuclear weapons in his arsenal. But he said he’s more worried about the unpredictability of the ongoing war of words between Trump and Kim than he is about the North Korean dictator launching a missile.

“It’s spinning out of control, that’s the fear,” he said. “Every single time Trump puts out one of his tweets and starts his boxing-ring kind of arguments, it feeds totally into the North Korean agenda back home.

“There doesn’t seem to be much strategy to what the administration is doing, other than the gut-reaction kind of responses.”

September 27, 2017 Posted by | 2 WORLD, weapons and war | Leave a comment

North Korea claims “the Right to Shoot Down U.S. Warplanes”

North Korea Says It Has the Right to Shoot Down U.S. Warplanes, NYT, 25 Sept 17, 

查看简体中文版 
查看繁體中文版  By RICK GLADSTONE and DAVID E. SANGER,  North Korea threatened on Monday to shoot down American warplanes even if they were not in the country’s airspace, stating that President Trump’s comments suggesting he would eradicate North Korea and its leaders were “a declaration of war.”

The warning, made by Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho of North Korea in New York after a week of United Nations General Assembly meetings, escalated the invective-laced exchanges with Mr. Trump and appeared to further preclude the possibility of a diplomatic exit from the biggest foreign crisis the administration has faced.

Administration officials denied that the United States had declared war on the isolated, nuclear-armed country of 25 million people, with Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, calling such a suggestion “absurd.”

She also said that “it’s never appropriate to shoot down another country’s aircraft when it’s over international waters” and that the United States wants a peaceful denuclearization of North Korea.

But Lt. Gen. H. R. McMaster, Mr. Trump’s national security adviser, said he saw no prospect of talks with North Korea that would allow its “de facto nuclear capability.” North Korea’s top leader, Kim Jong-un, has already ruled out giving up nuclear weapons. …….https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/25/world/asia/trump-north-korea.html?mtrref=www.nytimes.com&mtrref=www.nytimes.com

September 27, 2017 Posted by | North Korea, weapons and war | Leave a comment

American first strike against North Korea -prevented by North Korea’s A-Bomb – says Russia

North Korea’s A-Bomb Is Deterring U.S. First Strike, Russia Says https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-09-24/north-korea-s-a-bomb-is-deterring-u-s-first-strike-russia-says

By Elena Mazneva  
  • U.S. knows ‘for sure’ it has A-Bomb, foreign minister says
  • Korea, Japan, China, Russia may suffer if things get violent

North Korea’s possession of nuclear weapons is preventing the U.S. from launching a first strike against the rogue nation, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview.

 “The Americans won’t strike because they know for sure — rather than suspect — that it has atomic bombs,” Lavrov said Sunday on Russia’s NTV television. “I’m not defending North Korea right now, I’m just saying that almost everyone agrees with this analysis.”
 Lavrov said the U.S. attacked Iraq “solely because they had 100 percent information that there were no weapons of mass destruction left there,” refuting arguments the American government made at the time.
Tensions between the nations ratcheted up this weekend as President Donald Trump and North Korea Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho traded threats. On Saturday, U.S. Air Force B-1B bombers flew over international waters east of North Korea.
Lavrov said thousands of innocent people will suffer, in North Korea and in bordering South Korea, Japan and even maybe China and Russia, in the absence of a diplomatic solution.

Turning to another source of tension, Lavrov also added that he can’t rule out that the U.S. plans for Syria go beyond fighting terrorism. The Americans “swear that they have no goal in Syria other than eliminating terrorists,” he said. “When it happens, we’ll see if this was true or the U.S. nonetheless pursues some political goals, which we yet don’t know of.”

September 25, 2017 Posted by | North Korea, politics international, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Many nations signing up to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, at United Nations

World leaders line up to sign nuclear ban treaty http://thebulletin.org/world-leaders-line-sign-nuclear-ban-treaty, Tim Wright, 22 Sept 17

Amid deepening anxiety over the risk of war between the United States and North Korea, much of the international community is embracing the new Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. This historic global agreement formally opened for signature at UN headquarters on Wednesday.

Presidents, prime ministers, foreign ministers and ambassadors from 50 nations lined up to ink the accord, affirming their commitment to disarmament and categorically rejecting, for all time, the most destructive weapons ever created. More leaders are expected to sign in the coming days and weeks.

The signatories hope that, over time, the treaty will establish a powerful global norm against the use and possession of nuclear weapons by any state. Their ultimate objective: to convince all the world’s nations to sign and comply with the treaty, eliminating the nuclear-weapon threat completely.

At the signing ceremony, UN Secretary-General António Guterres declared the treaty open for signature. “There remain some fifteen thousand nuclear weapons in existence,” he reminded those gathered. “We cannot allow these doomsday weapons to endanger our world and our children’s future.”

Peter Maurer, the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, also participated in the ceremony. “Humanity simply cannot live under the dark shadow of nuclear warfare,” he said, describing the new treaty as a light “illuminating a pathway towards a world without nuclear weapons.”

Of the 50 nations that signed the treaty on Wednesday, three—Guyana, the Holy See, and Thailand—also deposited their instruments of ratification, thereby formally consenting to be bound to the treaty. Once 50 such instruments have been deposited, the treaty will enter into legal force.

The large number of signatures on the opening day is a remarkable show of support for a treaty that fundamentally challenges the status quo in nuclear diplomacy—one that goes beyond traditional arms control and non-proliferation approaches and embraces an abolitionist agenda.

In the weeks leading up to the ceremony, the United States worked energetically to dissuade nations from signing, perhaps with the aim of preventing it from entering into legal force. But its behind-the-scenes lobbying appears to have been largely unsuccessful.

If ever there were a moment for leaders to declare their total opposition to nuclear weapons, it is now. The dire international security environment is precisely why this treaty is such a vital initiative.

This post is part of Ban Brief, a series of updates on the historic 2017 negotiations to create a treaty banning nuclear weapons. Ban Brief is written by Tim Wright, Asia-Pacific director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, and Ray Acheson, director ofReaching Critical Will.

September 23, 2017 Posted by | politics international, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Latest escalation in nuclear tension – North Korea and USA – what happens next?

How We Got to North Korea’s Pacific Nuclear Test Threat and What Comes Next  It would be the first above-ground detonation in decades and would send tensions into uncharted territory. The Drive 
BY JOSEPH TREVITHICK, SEPTEMBER 22, 2017 In ever escalating war of words between the United States and Kim Jong-un’s totalitarian regime in North Korea has reached an entirely new level since President Donald Trump threatened to “totally destroy” the Hermit Kingdom in a speech to the United Nations General Assembly. It seems all but guaranteed that the rhetoric will lead to new North Korean provocations, but what’s unprecedented and potentially game-changing is that they could potentially include a full demonstration of a nuclear-armed ballistic missile, or at least an above-ground nuclear weapon test, either which in turn would similarly demand some form of American response.

This latest escalation in tensions between the U.S. government and North Korean officials began on Sept. 19, 2017, when Trump addressed the United Nations General Assembly for the first time with fiery remarks, lashing out at not only North Korea, but also Iran, Cuba, Venezuela, and other critics of American foreign policy more broadly. He vowed to put the United States interests first in all matters and encouraged the other assembled leaders to do the same. But he reserved some of the most incendiary comments for Kim, who he has now nicknamed “Rocket Man,” and his regime.

“The United States has great strength and patience, but if it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea,” he declared. “Rocket Man is on a suicide mission for himself and for his regime. The United States is ready, willing and able, but hopefully this will not be necessary.”

 This particular statement drew “audible gasps” from some of the world leaders in attendance, according to The Associated Press. The North Korean delegation had already walked out in protest before Trump even began speaking……..

The string of threats, especially Nikki Haley’s comments, suggest the United states and its allies could easily handle the increasingly worrisome situation with military force if it runs out of other options. This of course is entirely untrue and major conflict with North Korea would be devastating for all the involved parties.

Not surprisingly, this has not prompted a change in the behavior of the North Korean regime or Premier Kim. As we at The War Zone have noted for months, these statements feed into the country’s existing paranoid and propaganda that the United States and its allies are actively looking to destroy it and forcefully eliminate its government.

It has only appeared to give North Korea more of a reason to continue to develop advanced ballistic missiles and nuclear weapons to achieve some relative parity with the United States in order, if nothing else, to preserve the regime’s very existence. Kim said as much himself in a televised rebuttal on Sept. 21, 2017……

Trump continued the cycle on Sept. 22, 2017, as part of a series of Tweets on various topics. “Kim Jong Un of North Korea, who is obviously a madman who doesn’t mind starving or killing his people, will be tested like never before!” he posted on the social media site.

If his remarks in front of the United Nations seemed likely to generate a North Korean response, the Tweet sounded closer to a direct challenge. Given Kim’s immediate response to Trump’s threat of total destruction, it seems he will have little room but to make a provocative move in response to this new “test.”

After Kim’s own televised address, North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho had already said the North Korean response could include detonating a hydrogen bomb in or over the Pacific Ocean. Earlier in September 2017, North Korea tested what experts believe to be a working thermonuclear device…….

In the future, North Korea may simply need to conduct nuclear weapons tests outside of its own borders since the Punggye-ri underground test site may simply not be able to survive the strain of more powerful thermonuclear designs. The nuclear test earlier in September 2017 appeared to cause the tunnel containing the device to collapse, highlighting the limits of underground testing.

Even if the atmospheric test went as intended, it could be difficult to be entirely sure there would be no inadvertent casualties and the resulting fallout could easily fall on civilian mariners or populated areas……..

despite Nikki Haley’s and H.R. McMaster’s insistence that there are available military options to respond to these growing provocations, as well as Trump’s vague threats, any direct action would be fraught with its own dangers. One of the most likely courses of action, shooting down the missile, carries significant risks as the impact of the interceptor could trigger the device or the radioactive debris could fall over populated areas.

Perhaps more importantly to the viability of America’s still largely unproven ballistic missile defense shield, if the intercepting weapon misses or otherwise fails to achieve the desired effect, it would expose a serious vulnerability to not just North Korea, but the rest of the world…..

In particular, systems that engage the missile as it comes falling back down to earth, such as the Terminal High Altitude Air Defense (THAAD) system, have a very narrow window to achieve a “kill.” Furthermore, this means that personnel manning the interceptors would likely be in the direct path the incoming weapon, and if it was fully armed, a nuclear test.

There is very little room for failure in any of these scenarios. Even if the shoot down were to go smoothly, it is possible that it could trigger a larger and immensely destructive conflict on the Korean Peninsula or throughout East Asia. The War Zone’s Tyler Rogoway has highlighted these various issues previously in a deep dive into the United States’ available options in responding to North Korea’s continued provocations……..

All of these options still come with their own risks, though, and there’s still no indication that they would convince Kim to change course. If the North Korean regime’s primary goal is its own survival, it is perfectly rational for them to continue to demonstrate their resolve to respond in kind to American threats.

And despite his comments, Trump’s first step, on Sept. 21, 2017, was to sign a new executive order penalizing any individual or business doing business with North Korea. This follows a trend of steady sanctions against actors and firms outside of North Korea that the United States accuses of enabling the reclusive country’s government.

Trump and other members of his administration repeatedly question Kim’s mental stability, but as we at The War Zone have noted before, he clearly has a coherent plan. We’re still not sure that U.S. government has developed a thought-out strategy to dissuade him from his chosen path.

Contact the author: jtrevithickpr@gmail.com http://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/14561/how-we-got-to-north-koreas-pacific-nuclear-test-threat-and-what-comes-next

September 23, 2017 Posted by | North Korea, politics international, USA, weapons and war | Leave a comment

North Korea: Foreign Minister says North considering hydrogen bomb test on the Pacific Ocean

North Korea ‘threatens Pacific nuclear test’ Sky News, , 22 September 2017 North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho says he believes the North could consider a hydrogen bomb test on the Pacific Ocean of an unprecedented scale, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reports.

Mr Ri was speaking to reporters in New York when he was asked what North Korean leader Kim Jong-un had meant when he threatened in an earlier statement the ‘highest level of hard-line countermeasure in history’ against the United States.

North Korea could consider a hydrogen bomb test, Mr Ri said, although he did not know his leader’s exact thoughts, Yonhap reported.

In an earlier statement Mr Kim said Mr Trump was ‘mentally deranged’ and his comments were ‘the most ferocious declaration of a war in history,’ Mr Kim said the US president’s UN speech on Tuesday confirmed Pyongyang’s nuclear program has been ‘the correct path’.

‘His remarks … have convinced me, rather than frightening or stopping me, that the path I chose is correct and that it is the one I have to follow to the last,’ Mr Kim said in the statement carried by the North’s official KCNA news agency, promising to make Trump ‘pay dearly for his speech’.

Mr Trump had warned the North Korean leader in his UN address on Tuesday that the United States, if threatened, would ‘totally destroy’ the country of 26 million people and mocked Kim as a ‘rocket man’ on a suicide mission………

He offered more vitriol for Mr Trump, saying he was ‘unfit to hold the prerogative of supreme command of a country, and he is surely a rogue and a gangster fond of playing with fire, rather than a politician.’

‘Now that Trump has denied the existence of and insulted me and my country in front of the eyes of the world.., we will consider with seriousness exercising of a corresponding, highest level of hard-line countermeasure in history,’ Mr Kim said.http://www.skynews.com.au/news/top-stories/2017/09/22/trump-s-un-address-demonstrates–insanity-.html

September 23, 2017 Posted by | North Korea, politics international, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Trump at UN negotiates big weapons sales to South Korea

Moon and Trump agree on South Korea purchase of state-of-the-art US weaponry during summit

Hankyoreh Sep.22,2017  The deal is reportedly set to include nuclear powered submarines

South Korean President Moon Jae-in and US President Donald Trump agreed on Sept. 21 on a plan for South Korea to introduce state-of-the-art US weaponry or develop its own to counter North Korea’s recent nuclear and missile provocations. Later the same day, Moon had a luncheon and trilateral summit with Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, where the three agreed that the entire international community “must apply the maximum intensity sanctions and pressure so that North Korea cannot withstand it anymore and must come to the table for dialogue.” ……http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_northkorea/812155.html

September 23, 2017 Posted by | business and costs, South Korea, USA, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Hawaii’s preparations for nuclear attack – in secret, to avoid public panic

HAWAII READYING FOR NUCLEAR ATTACK IN SECRET MEETING TO AVOID PANIC, NewsWeek, BY CHRISTAL HAYES The state of Hawaii prepped for a nuclear attack in a meeting this week, but wouldn’t allow the public to attend and kicked out a photojournalist who snapped a picture.

Dozens of lawmakers met behind closed doors and talked about how to ready the state for an attack, including planned tests of alarms that would notify people they had 12 to 15 minutes to seek shelter, according to the Honolulu Civil Beat.

The presentation given at the meeting was marked “for official use only” and showed where North Korea could target and how bad the impact would be, Hawaii Representative Gene Ward told the news organization.

Ward added that officials don’t “want to spook any of the public”—which includes 1.4 million residents and 8 million tourists who visit the state annually.

Hawaii has been preparing for an attack for months, as military experts estimate a missile would take 20 minutes to reach the island from North Korea.

Hawaii Emergency Management Agency officials have said the chances of a nuclear attack are still “extremely small,” but the “unpredictable leadership” of North Korea means they should be prepared. They plan to have a public meeting and will start testing the attack alarms in November, but there are no plans to build any fallout shelters……..http://www.newsweek.com/nuclear-hawaii-trump-north-korea-kim-jong-un-669502

September 23, 2017 Posted by | USA, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Nations signing up to United Nations nuclear weapons ban treaty

50 signatories ink U.N. nuclear ban treaty opposed by major powers https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2017/09/21/world/50-nations-ink-u-n-nuclear-ban-treaty-opposed-major-powers/#.WcQszPMjHGg AP, KYODO, JIJI, 21 SEPT 17, AP, KYODO, JIJI  UNITED NATIONS/HIROSHIMA – Dozens of countries on Wednesday signed a treaty to ban nuclear weapons, a pact that the world’s nuclear powers spurned but supporters hailed as a historic agreement nonetheless.

“You are the states that are showing moral leadership in a world that desperately needs such moral leadership today,” Beatrice Fihn, executive director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, said as a signing ceremony began.

 Before the day was out, 50 signatories as different as Indonesia and Ireland had put their names to the treaty; others can sign later if they like. Guyana, Thailand and the Vatican also have already ratified the treaty, which needs 50 ratifications to take effect among the nations that back it.

They would be barred from developing, testing, producing, manufacturing, otherwise acquiring, possessing or stockpiling nuclear weapons “under any circumstances.”

Seven decades after the United States dropped two atomic bombs on Japan during World War II — the only use of nuclear weapons — there are believed to be about 15,000 of them in the world today. Amid rising tensions over North Korea’s nuclear and missile tests, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Tuesday that the threat of a nuclear attack is at its highest level since the end of the Cold War.

“This treaty is an important step towards the universally held goal of a world free of nuclear weapons,” he said Wednesday.

Supporters of the pact say it is time to push harder toward eliminating atomic weapons than nations have done through the nearly 50-year-old Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Under its terms, non-nuclear nations agreed not to pursue nukes in exchange for a commitment by the five original nuclear powers — the U.S., Russia, Britain, France and China — to move toward nuclear disarmament and to guarantee other states’ access to peaceful nuclear technology for producing energy.

More than 120 countries approved the new nuclear weapons ban treaty in July over opposition from nuclear-armed countries and their allies, who boycotted negotiations.

The U.S., Britain and France said the prohibition wouldn’t work and would end up disarming their nations while emboldening “bad actors,” in U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley’s words. French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian has called the treaty “wishful thinking” that is “close to irresponsible.” The nuclear powers have suggested instead strengthening the nonproliferation treaty, which they say has made a significant dent in atomic arsenals.

Absent from the signing ceremony were the five permanent U.N. Security Council seat holders — Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States — which all possess the destructive devices.

Nuclear umbrella nations, such as Japan and South Korea, and North Atlantic Treaty Organization members like Germany and The Netherlands did not endorse it either

“Although we share the same feelings about nuclear abolition, (the treaty) differs from Japan’s approach, so we will not be signing it,” Foreign Minister Taro Kono told reporters in New York.

“Unfortunately, the reality is that there are divisions between countries with nuclear weapons and those without, as well as between the countries without them, when it comes to recognizing (both) the inhumanity of nuclear weapons and the severity of the security environment,” he said, adding that Japan will try to bridge those gaps through existing frameworks.

Brazil was the first country to sign onto the ban Wednesday, followed by nations from Algeria to Venezuela.

“Those who still hold nuclear arsenals, we call upon them to join this date with history,” Costa Rican President Luis Guillermo Solis said as he prepared to sign.

In attendance at the signing ceremony were Japanese atomic bomb survivors and the mayor of Nagasaki.

The adoption of the treaty on July 7, when 122 countries voted in favor of banning atomic weapons for the first time after decades of prodding by atomic bomb victims — known as hibakusha in Japanese — and civil society.

The treaty’s backers believe that their path is the best option to prevent future nuclear catastrophes of the kind experienced by Japan in 1945 during the closing days of World War II. The bombings of Hiroshima on Aug. 6 of that year and Nagasaki three days later ushered in the nuclear era.

“The heroic survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki — the hibakusha — continue to remind us of the devastating humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons,” Guterres said.

Also speaking was Peter Maurer, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, who said the organization received a cable from Hiroshima on Aug. 30, 1945 describing a “city wiped out,” a great number of dead and over 100,000 wounded.

“The world today needs the promise of this treaty: the hope for a future without nuclear weapons,” he said. “Humanity simply cannot live under the dark shadow of nuclear warfare, and the immense suffering which we all know would result.”

In Hiroshima ahead of the signing, hibakusha and other citizens urged that all countries — including Japan — sign and ratify the treaty.

Close to 90 people gathered in front of the Atomic Bomb Dome. After observing a moment of silence, participants held up origami cranes and papers with messages demanding that countries sign the treaty.

The assembly was part of the Peace Wave 2017 campaign, in which citizens start a chain of movements from Japan in hopes of realizing a peaceful world free of nuclear weapons.

The event was planned by an organization of atomic bomb survivors in Hiroshima Prefecture and the Hiroshima Congress against A- and H-Bombs, or Hiroshima Gensuikin.

“If people believe that getting rid of nuclear weapons will lead to peace, a democratic government (sharing the belief) will be born, followed by the signing of the treaty,” said Kunihiko Sakuma, 72, head of the hibakusha organization.

“The governments of the nuclear nations will also change,” Sakuma added, emphasizing the importance of starting a civil movement.

As part of the campaign, more events will be held over the period through Tuesday, which has been set by the U.N. as International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons.

September 22, 2017 Posted by | 2 WORLD, politics international, weapons and war | Leave a comment

If there’s nuclear war with South Korea, Donald Trump will have headquarters in the sky

Technology 2017: President Trump’s Doomsday Plane

America’s ‘doomsday’ plane will be Donald Trump’s HQ if nuclear war breaks out with North Korea, news.com.au , 21 Sept 17 TAKE a look on board the “doomsday” plane which will protect Donald Trump’s team if nuclear war becomes a reality. THESE incredible photos reveal the inner workings of the ‘Doomsday’ planes — America’s secretive set of jets designed to wage nuclear war from the skies.
The specially-designed aircraft follow President Donald Trump wherever he travels in Air Force One in case nuclear war erupts, reports The Sun.

Known officially as National Airborne Operation Centres, they allow US leaders and wartime hawks to issue directives and wage war from the sky.

The Boeing E-4Bs costs around $A311 million each to create and $A201,000 per hour to operate.

They also feature a vast array of defence mechanisms, including the ability to withstand electromagnetic pulses.

The jets’ crews also use traditional analog flight instruments to navigate as they are less susceptible to cyber attack.

The aeroplanes, while not technically secret, are rarely mentioned — the air force does not even publicly acknowledge owning some of them. In operation since the 1970s, these airborne command posts were long considered the best chance for a Cold War president to survive a nuclear attack……..http://www.news.com.au/technology/innovation/inventions/americas-doomsday-plane-will-be-donald-trumps-hq-if-nuclear-war-breaks-out-with-north-korea/news-story/34d5e11ac9d75e58a2f65ccc4aac6864

September 22, 2017 Posted by | politics, USA, weapons and war | Leave a comment

USA and South Korea’ show of bombing force against North Korea

Korean peninsula draws range of military drills in show of force against North Korea http://www.reuters.com/article/us-northkorea-missiles/korean-peninsula-draws-range-of-military-drills-in-show-of-force-against-north-korea-idUSKCN1BT0CK, Ben Blanchard, Hyonhee Shin BEIJING/SEOUL (Reuters) 18 Sept 17, – The U.S. military staged bombing drills with South Korea over the Korean peninsula and Russia and China began naval exercises ahead of a U.N. General Assembly meeting on Tuesday where North Korea’s nuclear threat is likely to loom large.

The flurry of military drills came after Pyongyang fired another mid-range ballistic missile over Japan on Friday and the reclusive North conducted its sixth and most powerful nuclear test on Sept. 3 in defiance of United Nations sanctions and other international pressure.

A pair of U.S. B-1B bombers and four F-35 jets flew from Guam and Japan and joined four South Korean F-15K fighters in the latest drill, South Korea’s defense ministry said.

The joint drills were being conducted “two to three times a month these days”, Defence Minister Song Young-moo told a parliamentary hearing on Monday.

In Beijing, the official Xinhua news agency said China and Russia began naval drills off the Russian far eastern port of Vladivostok, not far from the Russia-North Korea border. Those drills were being conducted between Peter the Great Bay, near Vladivostok, and the southern part of the Sea of Okhotsk, to the north of Japan, it said.

The drills are the second part of China-Russian naval exercises this year, the first part of which was staged in the Baltic in July. Xinhua did not directly link the drills to current tension over North Korea.

China and Russia have repeatedly called for a peaceful solution and talks to resolve the issue.

On Sunday, however, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said the U.N. Security Council had run out of options on containing North Korea’s nuclear program and the United States might have to turn the matter over to the Pentagon.

September 22, 2017 Posted by | South Korea, USA, weapons and war | Leave a comment

America’s Senate passes bill to massively increase nuclear weapons production

Senate Passes Defense Bill That Would Bolster Nuclear Weapons Programs TruthOut September 19, 2017By Mike Ludwig, Truthout The Senate approved a massive defense policy bill by a vote of 89 to 9 on Monday that is raising concerns about nuclear weapons proliferation amid rising tensions between the United States and countries such as North Korea and Russia.

The Senate version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), an annual piece of “must-pass” legislation that shapes dozens of policies at the Pentagon, would authorize $640 billion in discretionary defense spending and an additional $60 billion for overseas military operations, such as the ongoing war efforts in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria.

What’s the value of $700 billion? It’s more than twice the size of Denmark’s entire economy, and the same amount of money that the government spent bailing out banks during the financial collapse in 2008. Both the Senate and House versions of the bill name amounts that exceed President Trump’s request for military funding by tens of billions of dollars.

The numbers put forth in the defense authorization bill set the bar for future defense spending legislation and policy determinations. As an authorization bill, this legislation does not actually permit the expenditure of those funds; an appropriations bill is needed for that.

The bill authorizes billions of dollars for nuclear weapons and nonproliferation programs, including $65 million for developing a cruise missile that nonproliferation groups fear could derail the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, a landmark nuclear treaty between the US and Russia.

Critics say increasing spending on the US nuclear arsenal could trigger other countries to invest in their own capabilities and add to the number of highly destructive weapons on the planet.

“We [are] already investing in nuclear weapons to a tune of about $20 million a year, so we really have to ask ourselves what the point of an increased investment would be, considering these are weapons that should never be used,” said Lindsay Koshgarian, director of the National Priorities Project, a group that tracks military spending, in an interview with Truthout.

The US has accused Russia of violating the INF Treaty by developing and fielding a land-based cruise missile with nuclear capabilities, a charge Russia has denied. The Senate’s version of NDAA authorizes research and development of a mid-range, road-mobile cruise missile system that could carry a nuclear warhead, similar to the missile Russia allegedly developed.

The Senate Armed Services Committee claims that the money could only be used for research and development of the missile, not testing and deployment, so it would not violate the treaty in the way that Russia allegedly has. Rather, the committee says, it would close a “capability” gap opened by Russia.

However, developing such a weapon would suck money away from nonproliferation programs while sowing divisions within NATO and giving Russia an excuse to reject the treaty and deploy large numbers of noncompliant missiles without constraint, according to the Arms Control Association.

Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) and Mike Lee (R-Utah) added an amendment to the bill that requires the defense secretary to submit a report to Congress on the rationale and strategic implications for developing such a weapon before the $65 million can be spent. Warren also included an amendment asking the Department of Defense to consider existing treaty obligations in an upcoming Nuclear Posture Review. The House rejected similar measures offered by Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Oregon).

The House version of the bill provides $25 million to develop conventional (non-nuclear) land-based cruise missiles and requires the president to submit a report on Russian compliance with the INF treaty within 15 months. If Russia is determined to be out of compliance, the treaty would no longer bind the US, effectively dissolving a decades-old nonproliferation agreement between the two countries that control about 90 percent of the world’s nuclear weapons.

The House bill would also block funding for extending the 2010 New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, a nuclear nonproliferation agreement considered a bright spot in US-Russia relations, unless Russia returns to compliance with the INF Treaty.

Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) and Mike Lee (R-Utah) added an amendment to the bill that requires the defense secretary to submit a report to Congress on the rationale and strategic implications for developing such a weapon before the $65 million can be spent. Warren also included an amendment asking the Department of Defense to consider existing treaty obligations in an upcoming Nuclear Posture Review. The House rejected similar measures offered by Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Oregon).

The House version of the bill provides $25 million to develop conventional (non-nuclear) land-based cruise missiles and requires the president to submit a report on Russian compliance with the INF treaty within 15 months. If Russia is determined to be out of compliance, the treaty would no longer bind the US, effectively dissolving a decades-old nonproliferation agreement between the two countries that control about 90 percent of the world’s nuclear weapons.

The House bill would also block funding for extending the 2010 New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, a nuclear nonproliferation agreement considered a bright spot in US-Russia relations, unless Russia returns to compliance with the INF Treaty…….

The US defense budget easily dwarfs that of any other country on the planet, and the NDAA would authorize an annual budget for the Pentagon that is even larger than the ones it received during the height of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Pentagon already receives more than half of federal discretionary spending, but if Congress were to honor the White House’s requests for domestic cuts, the portion of the discretionary budget that is earmarked for defense could top 68 percent.

However, since the bill does not actually appropriate any money, Congress faces difficult budget negotiations going forward. Democrats typically use defense spending as leverage to maintain or increase funding for domestic programs. If the funding levels specified in the NDAA were to be approved, a 2011 law that placed limits on military spending would need to be lifted or otherwise circumvented, because the bill outlines spending that would easily exceeds those limits.http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/41984-senate-passes-defense-bill-that-would-bolster-nuclear-weapons-programs

September 22, 2017 Posted by | USA, weapons and war | Leave a comment

UK’s religious leaders unite, to urge Theresa May to sign the UN nuclear weapons ban treaty

Sign up to the UN ban on nuclear weapons https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/sep/19/sign-up-to-the-un-ban-on-nuclear-weapons  The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament calls on the British government to support a historic treaty Around the world there are growing fears about the prospect of a nuclear war. The US-North Korea nuclear crisis is a terrifying reminder of the dangers of nuclear weapons and a powerful, yet unwelcome, riposte to the nuclear states who have long argued that these weapons of mass destruction deter war. But there is an alternative. The overwhelming majority of states want abolition of all nuclear weapons and have taken matters into their own hands. A legally binding nuclear weapons ban treaty has been agreed by 122 states at the UN, the culmination of decades of global civil society campaigning.

That treaty opens for signature today, and more than 100 states are set to sign this ground-breaking document. This is an open invitation from the majority of the world’s states to all countries to sign up and work to make the abolition of nuclear weapons a reality. Our government says it is committed to the same aim, yet it boycotted the talks that produced the treaty and insists the UK will never sign. But the opportunity is there; the UK must seize it and work to make a success of it. The alternative is spiralling nuclear proliferation, massively increased danger and inevitable annihilation. For all our futures, we urge Theresa May to sign the treaty.
Caroline Lucas MP Chair Parliamentary CND, Malcolm McMahon Archbishop of Liverpool, Kelvin Hopkins MP, Mark Serwotka PCS union, Stephen Cottrell Bishop of Chelmsford, Mohammed Kozbar Muslim Association of Britain, Tommy Sheppard MP, Hywel Williams MP, Kate Hudson CND general secretary, Jill BakerMethodist Church in Britain, Juliet Prager Quakers in Britain, Ronnie Cowan MP

September 22, 2017 Posted by | Religion and ethics, UK, weapons and war | Leave a comment

Vatican ratifies treaty on the prohibition of nuclear arms

Holy See ratifies treaty on the prohibition of nuclear arms, (Vatican Radio) 21 Sept 17,  The Holy See on Thursday became one of the first entities to sign and ratify a new treaty prohibiting nuclear weapons. The treaty was signed by Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States, for the Holy See, and in the name of and on behalf of Vatican City State.

More than 40 countries signed the treaty during a high level signing ceremony at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. Along with the Holy See, Thailand also ratified the treaty. More nations are expected to sign in coming days, with the treaty set to go into effect 90 days after it has been ratified by at least 50 nations…….http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/09/21/holy_see_ratifies_treaty_on_the_prohibition_of_nuclear_arms/1338124

September 22, 2017 Posted by | EUROPE, Religion and ethics, weapons and war | 1 Comment

US and Other Nuclear Powers Refuse to Sign Historic UN Treaty to Ban Atomic Weapons

Treaty banning nuclear weapons opened for signatures at United Nations, but key nations won’t take part, by UN News Centre , 21 Sept 17, 

The world’s first legally-binding treaty prohibiting nuclear weapons opened for signature on Wednesday at the United Nations Headquarters in New York at a ceremony at which speakers from international organizations, governments and civil society hailed this milestone in achieving a world free of such arsenals as well as the work that remains to be done……
..nuclear-armed States and most of their allies stayed out of the negotiations. Immediately following its adoption, the United States, the United Kingdom and France issued a joint press statement saying that they “have not taken part in the negotiation of the treaty… and do not intend to sign, ratify or ever become party to it.”
The Treaty will enter into force 90 days after it has been ratified by at least 50 countries.

At Wednesday’s ceremony, chaired by UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Izumi Nakamitsu, 42 countries signed the Treaty, with more expected. The Holy See and Thailand not only signed but also ratified it.

The President of the General Assembly, Miroslav Lajčák, noted at the ceremony that the Treaty demonstrates the will of Member States to bring about change.

“It will raise public awareness about the risks of nuclear weapons. It will keep us on track for achieving our goal of a world in which nuclear weapons exist only in movies or books. But we need to do more to get the whole way there.” https://www.commondreams.org/news/2017/09/21/us-and-other-nuclear-powers-refuse-sign-historic-un-treaty-ban-atomic-weapons

September 22, 2017 Posted by | 2 WORLD, politics international, weapons and war | Leave a comment

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