The Acronym Institute for Disarmament Diplomacy

The Acronym Institute for Disarmament Diplomacy has been working since 1995 to promote effective approaches to international security, disarmament and arms control. Engaging with governments and civil society, Acronym provides reporting, analysis and strategic thinking on a range of issues relevant to peace and security, with special emphasis on treaties and multilateral initiatives.

The Acronym Institute publishes the journal Disarmament Diplomacy, with comprehensive overview of news, events and documentation relating to disarmament negotiations and developments in proliferation.

Founding Director & Editor: Dr Rebecca Johnson rej@acronym.org.uk
Deputy Director and Website manager: Nicola Butler

The Acronym Institute is grateful to the Ford Foundation, the Ploughshares Fund, and the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust for their enabling support of our work and publications, including this website.

Highlights

BWC Meeting of Experts (MX), 18 - 22 August 2008

The second Meeting of Experts takes place this week in Geneva. The reports below are written and produced by the BioWeapons Prevention Project and with support from the Acronym Institute.

Reports from Geneva

• The 2008 Meeting of Experts: The Final Day, MX Report No.6, by Richard Guthrie, Monday 25 August 2008. Also available in pdf format.
• The 2008 Meeting of Experts: The Fourth Day, MX Report No.5, by Richard Guthrie, Thursday 21 August 2008. Also available in pdf format.
• The 2008 Meeting of Experts: The Third Day, MX Report No.4, by Richard Guthrie, Thursday 21 August 2008. Also available in pdf format.
• The 2008 Meeting of Experts: The Second Day, MX Report No.3, by Richard Guthrie, Wednesday 20 August 2008. Also available in pdf format.
• The 2008 Meeting of Experts: The Opening Day, MX Report No.2, by Richard Guthrie, Tuesday 19 August 2008. Also available in pdf format.
• The 2008 Meeting of Experts: Biosecurity and Education, MX Report No.1, by Richard Guthrie, Monday 18 August 2008. Also available in pdf format.

US - Poland Missile Defence Agreement, August 2008

The US and Poland have signed an agreement concerning deployment of ground-based ballistic missile defence interceptors to be based in Poland, as part of the US Missile Defence programme. Whilst the US argues that missile defence is not targeted at Russia, the programme has proved highly controversial and detrimental to NATO-Russia relations, particularly as key components such as these interceptors are based in the territory of former Warsaw pact countries.

• Text of the Declaration on Strategic Cooperation Between the United States of America and the Republic of Poland, 20 August 2008

Proliferation in Parliament, Summer 2008

Latest developments and debate from the UK Parliament.

March - July 2008

• Start worrying and learn to ditch the bomb, Letter to The Times by Douglas Hurd, Malcolm Rifkind, David Owen and George Robertson, 30 June 2008
• Britain's new nuclear abolitionists, by Rebecca Johnson, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, 15 July 2008
• UK Shadow Foreign Secretary William Hague speech on Nuclear Non-Proliferation, 23 July 2008
• Trident and Nuclear Submarines
• Atomic Weapons Establishments and Nuclear Transport
• Nuclear Facilities and Security
• NATO and Nuclear Weapons
• Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament
• British Policy on Iran's nuclear programme
• Missile Defence
• National Security Strategy
• Chemical and Biological Weapons
• Scottish Parliament

The UK and Nuclear Weapons, July 2008

• Britain's new nuclear abolitionists, by Rebecca Johnson, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, 15 July 2008
• Start worrying and learn to ditch the bomb, Letter to The Times by Douglas Hurd, Malcolm Rifkind, David Owen and George Robertson, 30 June 2008
• Federation of American Scientists reports removal of US nuclear weapons from the UK, 26 June 2008

Nuclear Non-Proliferation News, June 2008

This month's edition includes information on:

• Trident and Disarmament
• Trident Costs
• Trident Safety Problems
• UK Nuclear Infrastructure
• Scottish Opposition to Trident intensifies
• CND 50th anniversary protests
• Anti-Nuclear Protests Continue
• International Disarmament Initiatives, Op-eds and Analysis
• New Nuclear Weapons Developments
• US Election
• NATO and Socchi Summits
• Missile Defence and the Weaponisation of Space

Disarmament Documentation, June & July 2008

Disarmament Documentation is a compilation of recent official documents and statements relevant to arms control, non-proliferation and disarmament.

• UK Shadow Foreign Secretary William Hague speech on Nuclear Non-Proliferation, 23 July 2008
• Barack Obama Foreign Policy speech, including nuclear policy, 15 July 2008
• North Korea Foreign Ministry Statement on the disablement of Yongbyon, 4 July 2008
• Start worrying and learn to ditch the bomb, Letter to The Times by Douglas Hurd, Malcolm Rifkind, David Owen and George Robertson, 30 June 2008
• Federation of American Scientists reports removal of US nuclear weapons from the UK, 26 June 2008
• President Bush press conference on North Korea, 26 June 2008
• US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on the North Korea Declaration, 26 June 2008
• US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice Op-Ed on North Korea, 26 June 2008
• North Korea: Presidential Action on State Sponsor of Terrorism (SST) and the Trading with the Enemy Act (TWEA), 26 June 2008
• EU High Representative for the CFSP Javier Solana, Speech to the Conference on Disarmament, 25 June 2008
• French Defense White Paper, 17 June 2008
• IAEA Director General Dr Mohamed ElBaradei Statement to the IAEA Board of Governors, 17 June 2008
• Proposal to Iran by China, France, Germany, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and the European Union, 14 June 2008
• EU High Representative for the CFSP Javier Solana, Remarks at Press Conference in Tehran, 14 June 2008
• President Bush and Prime Minister Brown on Iran, 14 June 2008
• IAEA Director General Dr Mohamed ElBaradei Interview with Der Spiegel, 11 June 2008

NPT Preparatory Committee meeting, April - May 2008

The second PrepCom for the 2010 NPT Review Conference took place in Geneva from 28 April to 9 May 2008.

Rebecca Johnson, Executive Director of the Acronym Institute for Disarmament Diplomacy participated, and her analyses are available below. For NGO updates and the main statements and documents from the PrepCom see also Reaching Critical Will.

Latest Updates and Briefings

• 2008 NPT PrepCom adopts report but not Chair's factual and balanced Summary, Rebecca Johnson, May 9, 2008
• Chair's Factual Summary, May 9, 2008
• Statement by the Delegations of China, France, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America, Delivered by UK Ambassador John Duncan to the 2008 NPT PrepCom, Geneva, May 9, 2008
• 2008 NPT PrepCom: Debates over, plus safeguards summary, Rebecca Johnson, 7 May 2008
• 2008 NPT PrepCom: Decisions taken, Security Assurances debated, Rebecca Johnson, 6 May 2008
• 2008 NPT PrepCom: Calm first week and disarmament roundup, Rebecca Johnson, 2 May 2008
• Day 3, General Debate ends with concerns about cold war legacies of tactical nuclear weapons and contamination, Rebecca Johnson, 30 April 2008
• General debate day 2: Of Common Endeavours and Double Standards, Rebecca Johnson, 29 April 2008
• 2008 NPT PrepCom gets going smoothly, Report of Day 1: April 28, 2008, Rebecca Johnson

Webcasts from Geneva

• The NPT review process, Rebecca Johnson, 28 April 2008
• Expectations for the 2008 PrepCom, Rebecca Johnson, 28 April 2008

Reports from Disarmament Diplomacy

• Is the NPT being Overtaken by Events? by Rebecca Johnson , Disarmament Diplomacy, No.87, Spring 2008
• Back from the Brink? The 2007 NPT PrepCom Report
  by Rebecca Johnson. A detailed analysis of the conduct, dynamics, and substantive debates at the 2007 NPT PrepCom, Disarmament Diplomacy No. 85, Summer 2007.
  See also: Chair's Summary, reproduced in full

Disarmament Diplomacy, Issue No.87, Spring 2008

• Time to Outlaw the Use of Nuclear Weapons, Editorial, by Rebecca Johnson

• Is the NPT being Overtaken by Events? by Rebecca Johnson

• Stagnation and Redundancy: Report on the 2007 UN First Committee, by Michael Spies, including:

  • 2007 First Committee Resolutions, Summary and Explanations
    
    
• US and Russian Public Opinion on Arms Control and Space Security, Nancy Gallagher
  
  
• Space War, the Logical Next Mistake for US Exceptionalism, Mike Moore
  
  
• Bucharest Summit: US Missile Defence Bases Continue to Divide NATO, by Nicola Butler and Martin Butcher
  

• In the News
  • Toward a Nuclear-Free World, George P. Shultz, William J. Perry, Henry A. Kissinger, Sam Nunn and others, Wall Street Journal, January 15, 2008
  • A World Free of Nuclear Weapons George P. Shultz, William J. Perry, Henry A. Kissinger and Sam Nunn, Wall Street Journal, January 4, 2007
  • Laying the Foundations for Multilateral Disarmament, Des Browne MP, UK Secretary of State for Defence, Statement to the Conference on Disarmament, Geneva, February 5, 2008
  • Presentation of Le Terrible in Cherbourg, Nicolas Sarkozy, President of the French Republic, March 21, 2008 (excerpts)
  • Oslo Conference on Achieving the Vision of a World Free of Nuclear Weapons, Jonas Gahr Støre, Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Statement to the Conference on Disarmament, Geneva, March 4, 2008 (excerpts)
  • North Atlantic Council (NAC) Statement on The Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE) Treaty, March 28, 2008
  • Bucharest Summit Declaration, April 3, 2008
  • US-Russia Strategic Framework Declaration, April 6, 2008
  • Conference on Disarmament fails to adopt 2008 programme of work, tries new P-6 presidential draft decision, March 13, 2008

NATO Summit, 2 - 4 April 2008

NATO Heads of State and Government met in Bucharest against a backdrop of strained relations between the US and Russia, particularly concerning missile defence and the siting of US missile defence bases in Poland and the Czech Republic. NATO also faces increasingly difficult conditions in Afghanistan.

• NATO Communiqué analysis, by Martin Butcher, 3 April 2008
• Full text of the North Atlantic Council Communiqué is available at: http://www.nato.int/docu/pr/2008/p08-049e.html
• NATO Prepares for the Bucharest Summit, by Martin Butcher, 2 April 2008
• NATO Foreign Ministers Meeting, by Martin Butcher, 6 March 2008
• House of Commons Defence Committee Report on the Future of NATO, 4 March 2008
• Acronym Institute evidence to the Defence Committee Inquiry on the Future of NATO, 19 March 2007
• NATO Informal Defence Ministers' Meeting Update and Documents, by Martin Butcher, 11 February 2008

Read Martin Butcher's blog on the Summit at:

http://natobucharest.blogspot.com/

United Nations First Committee, 2007

The UN First Committee took place at the United Nations, NY, from October 8 to November 2. As usual, the Acronym Institute participated and will compile a detailed report of the developments. Details of the resolutions and voting are available below:

• 2007 First Committee Resolutions: Summary and Explanations, compiled on behalf of the Acronym Institute by Michael Spies.

For more information on the First Committee and General Assembly visit our page on the United Nations.

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