Forum:General Assembly First Committee
Forum:General Assembly First Committee
Issue: The threat of expanding nuclear arsenals.
Student Officer:PawełGłówczewski
Position: Chair of General Assembly First Comittee
Introduction:
Undoubtedly one of the most controversial issues of XXI century is the problem of nuclear weapons. Believing that the countries which have spent incalculable resources and energy for building up that nuclear arsenal might not never use them - is baleful. Thousands of various, dangerous weapons are ready to launch at this moment which might undeniably provide to termination of mankind. The impact of this devastation will not be limited to the participating countries only, as perceived by many people.
To say nothing of aside from presentness, it must be said that nuclear weapons caused humanity a lot of issues in previous century. In the past, nuclear bombs were used to kill thousands of people and destroy many cities. This kind of weapon is still used in order to “maintance world peace” – that what is said in question of Iraq, where political status is unestablished. We cannot use nuclear bombs as a way to consolidate peace.
Nuclear arsenal is one of the most powerful tool in humans’ hands and using it with special regulations and restrictions might provide humanity to fearless future. We have to control nuclear power in order to not repeat our mistakes such as catastrophe in Japan and terrific disaster seen in Charnobyl.
Definition of Key Terms:
NUCLEAR WEAPON
The United Nation’s definition of nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions. Nuclear bomb releases an amount of energy which could destroy even entire cities.
RADIATION
This term widely describes the emission or the transmission of energy in the form of particles or waves through space or through a material medium. Radiation appears after breaking-out of a nuclear bomb.
NUCLEAR NON-PROFILERATION TREATY (NPT)
It is an international treaty whose objective is to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology and to promote cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy.
NUCLEAR PROLIFERATION
The United Nation’s believes that this term means the spread of nuclear weapons, weapons-applicable nuclear technology, fissionable materials and information to nations not recognized as “Nuclear Weapon States” by the NPT.
NUCLEAR FUSHION
This term means atomic reaction in which multiple atoms combine to create a single, more massive atom.
Major organisations involved:
THE ATOM PROJECT
An international campaign which primary goal is to build worldwide support for the abolishment of nuclear testing and the limitation of all nuclear arsenals. It has been founded by the Nazarbayev Center of Kazakhstan.
NUCLEAR THREAT INITIATIVE (NTI)
A nonprofit, nonpartisan organization created in 2001 by Ted Turner and U.S. Senator Sam Nunn. It has been created in order to prevent catastrophic attacks and accidents with weapons of mass disruption. NTI is actively engaged in shaping, implementing and developing nuclear security projects.
INTERNATIONAL PHYSICIANS FOR THE PREVENTION OF NUCLEAR WAR (IPPNW)
A federation of national medical groups of 63 countries, represented by various people of medicine like doctors, health workers, medical students who share the common goal of creating a more peaceful and secure world which would be free from the threat of nuclear annihilation.
NUCLEAR INFORMATION AND RESOURVE SERVICE (NIRS)
It is an anti-nuclear organization founded in 1978 by Michael Mariotte to create the information and networking center for citizens and other organizations concerned about nuclear arsenals, weapons, radiation and radioactive waste issues. The organization advocates the implementation of safe, sustainable solutions such as energy efficiency, wind power and plug-in hybrids and solar power.
Background information:
Who has nuclear weapons and why?
July 7, 2017 following weeks of intensive negotiations, two-thirds of the world’s nations vote to adopt the landmark UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. Over 70 years after the dropping of two bombs on Nagasaki and Hiroshima. It's important to point out that some things did not change since 1945; first —and perhaps most important—in spite of international legal institutions that are effective and valuable in a wide range of ordinary situations, crises continue to arise in which each nation becomes the judge of its own cause and of the methods and intensity with which it will seek to advance its interests.Thus it is so hard nowadays to achieve full nuclear disarmament with each bearer clutching to its war-time arsenal for what is perceived as stability. We have already been, in our history as human species, dangerously close to bringing an end to the world as we know it. It is only with careful diplomatic measures now that we can ensure the threat won't come back as a result of a thermonuclear war.
Here is the list of countries with presumed numbers of nuclear war materials that we will be discussing:
The nuclear-weapon states (NWS) are the five states—China, France, Russia, United Kingdom, and the United States. Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, which entered in force in 1970 to stop the spread of nuclear warheads, legitimizes these states’ nuclear arsenals, but establishes they are not supposed to build and maintain such weapons in perpetuity. That means Israel (which is deliberately ambiguous about its nuclear potential), Pakistan and India are non-signatories while North Korea had ratified the treaty but since then has offered a withdrawal and has become maybe the most real nuclear threat. It's easy to forget that not all nuclear arms bearers have had their warheads since a long time. India first tested a nuclear explosive device in 1974. That test spurred Pakistan to ramp up work on its secret nuclear weapons program, thus both countries conducted publicly demonstrated nuclear tests in 1998 (sic!). Israel has not publicly conducted a nuclear test.
The weapons themselves
The first nuclear weapons werebombsdelivered by aircraft. Later, warheads were developed for strategicballisticmissiles, which have become by far the most important nuclear weapons.Nuclear weapons produce enormous explosive energy. Their significance may best be appreciated by the coining of the wordskiloton(1,000 tons) andmegaton(1,000,000 tons) to describe their blast energy in equivalent weights of the conventional chemical explosiveTNT.Their physical damage comes primarily from the shock and heat waves but other major factors are also the lethal ionizing radiation and the currents that suck up whatever is left on the ground.
How we store nuclear warheads is also of great importance, mainly because of the radioactive fallout which can lead to poisoning in settlements in close vicinity, with different types of cancer having been documented.
This is a picture of Hiroshima, razed to the ground by 15 kilotones of explosive power.
Previous attempts to solve this issue:
1. Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, 1968.
The NPT non-nuclear-weapon states agree never to acquire nuclear weapons and the NPT nuclear-weapon statesin exchange agree to share the benefits of peaceful nuclear technology and to pursue nuclear disarmament aimed at the ultimate elimination of their nuclear arsenals
2. Partial Test Ban Treaty(PTBT), 1963
It used the massive public anxiety over nuclear fallout and thus prohibited alltest detonationsofnuclear weaponsexcept for those conductedunderground. Some countries have not signed, including China and North Korea.
3. Threshold Test Ban Treaty(TTBT), 1974, 1990
Signed by the United States andSoviet Union, it establishes a nuclear "threshold," by prohibitingtestsof nuclear devices having a yield exceeding 150kilotons (that applies to underground tests).
Possible solutions:
The most achievable solution now seems to be the ratification by at least 50 countries of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which has just passed this July. For those nations that are party to it, the treaty prohibits the development, testing, production, stockpiling, stationing, transfer, use and threat of use of nuclear weapons, as well as assistance and encouragement to the prohibited activities. All the nuclear weapon states did not vote.
Hopefully, looking ahead, we could, within our lifetime, organize a more comprehensive dyplomatic system of negotiation based around existing treaties that could render the use of nuclear weapons useless.
Bibliography:
The international campaign to abolish nuclear weapons has a great, richly detailed timeline of the most important events regarding the topic. Check it out:
A brief look on how nuclear weapons have developed and how our attitudes towards them have changed:
When has each nuclear arms bearer got their weapons and where they tested them:
About “The Atom Project”:
About “Nuclear Threat Initiative”: