Weapons of Mass Destruction

Since 2006, EWI has been working to overcome political obstacles that inhibit efforts to eliminate weapons of mass destruction.

Governments are divided on responses to threats from weapons of mass destruction, especially from nuclear weapons. At the Millennium Review summit in New York in 2005, heads of UN member states agreed for the first time ever that the threat from WMD is one of the most serious and imminent threats to human security.

Yet, they could not agree on practical responses. The most significant hurdles to consensus on such responses are the divisions between the United States and Russia on one hand and, on the other, divisions between NATO and countries such as China, Egypt, India, Iran, Israel, Pakistan, Syria, and North Korea.

EWI works to overcome these divisions. EWI has relied on its record as a trusted convener and its networks at the highest levels of government – particularly in Russia, China and the United States – to address political obstacles that have stalled global arms control discussions.

A series of events and meetings organised in 2007 and 2008 have helped to reenergize these discussions. The most prominent of these was Seizing the Moment: Breakthrough Measures to Build a New East-West Consensus on Weapons of Mass Destruction and Disarmament, a historic consultation at the United Nations on UN Day, October 24, 2008. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon delivered the keynote address, offering a five-point proposal to eliminate nuclear weapons and an unprecedented endorsement of an international convention against such weapons.

EWI has also convened teams of U.S. and Russian scientists to examine Iran’s nuclear abilities. The yearlong Joint Threat Assessment of Iranian Nuclear and Missile Capabilities carefully assesses Iran’s capabilities and U.S. and Russian efforts, such as U.S. plans to deploy a missile defense system in Poland and the Czech Republic, to address them.

Iran, Nuclear Zero and the ICNND Report

Event Report

Iran, Nuclear Zero and the ICNND Report

An EastWest Institute consultation critically reviewed recommendation of Eliminating Nuclear Threats, the report of the International Commission on Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament.

Reframing Nuclear De-Alert: Decreasing the Operational Readiness of U.S. and Russian Arsenals

Event Report

Reframing Nuclear De-Alert: Decreasing the Operational Readiness of U.S. and Russian Arsenals

The Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP) hosted a presentation of a study on “Reframing Nuclear De-Alert: Decreasing the Operational Readiness of U.S. and Russian Arsenals.”

Bringing Pakistan Out of the Nuclear Cold

Commentary

Bringing Pakistan Out of the Nuclear Cold

EWI board member Ikram Sehgal argues that a U.S.-Pakistan civilian nuclear deal like the one between the U.S. and India can further the cause of nuclear nonproliferation.

Reframing Nuclear De-Alert: Decreasing the Operational Readiness of U.S. and Russian Nuclear Arsenals

Publication

Reframing Nuclear De-Alert: Decreasing the Operational Readiness of U.S. and Russian Nuclear Arsenals

As part of an effort towards arms reduction and nuclear disarmament, EWI releases recommendations to reduce alert levels of U.S. and Russian nuclear arsenals.

Eliminating the Nuclear Threat

Publication

Eliminating the Nuclear Threat

EWI offers comprehensive proposals to eliminate the threat of nuclear weapons. Recommendations reflect proposals from voices from around the world who came together at an EWI-convened consultation at U.N. headquarters on October 24, 2008.

Bringing Pakistan Out of the Nuclear Cold

Commentary

Bringing Pakistan Out of the Nuclear Cold

EWI board member Ikram Sehgal argues that a U.S.-Pakistan civilian nuclear deal like the one between the U.S. and India can further the cause of nuclear nonproliferation.

QDR: Quandary for U.S. Defense Responsibilities?

Commentary

QDR: Quandary for U.S. Defense Responsibilities?

EWI Vice President W. Pal Sidhu examines the 2010 U.S. Quadrennial Defense Review and suggests that, despite its ambitious agenda, it fails to address nuclear nonproliferation.

Secret Iranian Missile Memos

Commentary

Secret Iranian Missile Memos

Geoff Forden suggests that Iran's missile designs are motivated not by the speed with which it wants to secure nuclear capabilities, but by a desire to produce large engines indigenously.

Iran, Nuclear Zero and the ICNND Report

Event Report

Iran, Nuclear Zero and the ICNND Report

An EastWest Institute consultation critically reviewed recommendation of Eliminating Nuclear Threats, the report of the International Commission on Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament.

Reframing Nuclear De-Alert: Decreasing the Operational Readiness of U.S. and Russian Arsenals

Event Report

Reframing Nuclear De-Alert: Decreasing the Operational Readiness of U.S. and Russian Arsenals

The Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP) hosted a presentation of a study on “Reframing Nuclear De-Alert: Decreasing the Operational Readiness of U.S. and Russian Arsenals.”

Is the CTBT D.O.A.?

Event Report

Is the CTBT D.O.A.?

At a bipartisan roundtable at the EastWest Institute, Ambassador Robert Grey and Stephen Rademaker explored the prospects of U.S. ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty.