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CNS Feature Stories

Special articles and reports on timely nonproliferation issues by CNS staff.

Updated: Jun 4, 2009

Recent Stories

Current Feature Story

Posted: June 26, 2009 North Korea’s Nuclear Test and its Aftermath: Coping with the Fallout: by CNS Research Staff; This CNS issue brief for the Nuclear Threat Initiative explores the implications of North Korea’s test on regional and international security.
Image: Epicenter of North Korean Test. Source: US Geological Survey

Current Feature Story

Posted: June 16, 2009 Letter to Congress: U.S. production of Mo-99 for medical radioisotopes: by Cristina Hansell; Problems at Canada's 52-year-old NRU reactor have resulted in the postponement and cancellation of medical procedures around the world, highlighting the dangers of reliance on just four major producers of the critical medical isotope Tc-99m. Despite the availability of other methods, these major Tc-99m producers use weapons-grade uranium (supplied by the United States), increasing the risks of nuclear terrorism. On June 15, 2009, a letter was sent to Congress urging support for the construction of safe Tc-99m production facilities in the United States.
Image: NRU reactor in Chalk River, Canada. Source: National Research Council of Canada

2009 Feature Stories

Posted: June 4, 2009 CNS Conducts Intensive International Safeguards Course: by Masako Toki; CNS co-hosted a seminar held as a side event of the 2009 NPT Preparatory Committee (PrepCom) on May 8, 2009 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.
Image: Several seminar panelists.
Posted: May 26, 2009 Report from the NPT Preparatory Committee 2009: by Miles A. Pomper; Details of the third and final preparatory committee (PrepCom) meeting for the 2010 Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) review conference.
Image: United Nations Headquarters in New York.
Posted: May 26, 2009 CNS Conducts Intensive International Safeguards Course: Report on a one-week course conducted in Monterey aimed at graduate students and professionals interested in pursuing careers in nonproliferation and nuclear safeguards.
Image: Several safeguards course participants.
Posted: May 25, 2009 CNS Report: North Korea Conducts Nuclear Test: On May 25, DPRK carried out its second nuclear test. International reaction has been swift. Initial reports point to a higher yield for this test than the first in 2006.
Image: Kim Jong Il posing with a Korean People's Army unit.
Posted: May 12, 2009 U.S., Russian High School Students Present Research On Nuclear Disarmament: by Masako Toki; This year's spring conference, held April 23-24, 2009 in Monterey, witnessed remarkably successful results and the largest number of participants in the history of the program.
Image: Spring 2009 CIF conference participants
Posted: April 27, 2009 The North Korean Rocket Launch: International Reactions and Implications: by East Asia Nonproliferation Program (EANP); In reaction to the UNSC condemnation of its rocket launch, North Korea pulled out of the six-party talks. The current crisis will be a serious challenge to regional stability.
Image: North Korean rocket launch. [Src: KCNA]
Posted: April 14, 2009 2010: Time for a New Beginning [PDF]: by International Organizations & Nonproliferation Program (IONP); CNS recently hosted a two-day diplomatic Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) workshop in Annecy, France, to identify lessons of recent PrepComs, address nonproliferation regime challenges, and discover how to define and achieve success.
Image: Last year's Annecy NPT Workshop.
Posted: April 8, 2009 North Korean Satellite Falls Short of Expectations: by Dean Knox; On April 5, North Korea carried out its planned launch of a satellite but the three-stage rocket used appears to have failed in the final stage.
Image: North Korean propaganda poster: "A Satellite Launch with Our Power and Knowledge: The First 'Boom' of a Strong and Powerful Country."
Posted: April 1, 2009 Launch of North Korean "Communications Satellite" Draws Near, Raising Concerns of Regional Instability: by Dean Knox; The DPRK's plans to launch a satellite on a modified long-range missile have had a significant impact on regional threat perceptions.
Image: North Korean propaganda poster: "A Satellite Launch with Our Power and Knowledge: The First 'Boom' of a Strong and Powerful Country."; Cristina Hansell and William C. Potter, Editors; This new Occasional Paper analyzes the prevailing perspectives, bureaucratic players, & politics and provides recommendations on how to engage Beijing and Moscow on "the road to zero."
Image: Cover of Occasional Paper #15.
Posted: February 26, 2009 CNS Conducts Workshop on Implementing UNSC Resolution 1540 in Uzbekistan: by Dauren Aben; On February 10-11, CNS, in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan, held a workshop on implementing United Nations Security Council Resolution 1540.
Photo: Uzbekistan UNSC Resolution 1540 Workshop attendees.
Posted: February 13, 2009 New WMD Coordinator Has the Right Stuff, But Will He Have the Right Staff?: by Anya Loukianova, Leonard Spector; President Obama's new WMD Proliferation/ Terrorism Coordinator will watch over a vast array of activities. But whether he will be given the stature and staff to do the job right remains an open question.
Chart: US government agencies combating nuclear proliferation.
Posted: January 26, 2009 Leading Nonproliferation Experts Identify Ten Most Significant Proliferation-Related Events and Trends of 2008 [PDF]: edited by Stephen Schwartz, William Potter, and Jonathan B. Tucker; Some of the year's most important developments received widespread national and international attention, others, though no less important, were largely overlooked by the news media.
Image: Earth from space.
Posted: January 7, 2009 Nuclear Challenges and Policy Options for the Next U.S. Administration [PDF]: edited by Jean du Preez; A new Occasional Paper presents sixteen papers by participants of the Monterey Nonproliferation Strategy Group meeting on August 20-21, 2008.
Image: Cover of Occasional Paper #14
Posted: January 6, 2009 U.S. and Russian High School Teachers Discuss Nuclear Disarmament at Teacher Development Workshop: by Masako Toki; Twenty U.S. and Russian high school teachers attended a Critical Issues Forum Teacher Development Workshop on December 4-6, 2008 in Monterey.
Image: Workshop participants

2008 Feature Stories

Posted: December 19, 2008 CNS Conducts Seminar on Radiological Source Security in Georgia: by Margarita Sevcik; On November 20-21, 2008, an international seminar was conducted by CNS, the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia.
Image: Radiological Source Security seminar participants
Posted: December 11, 2008 Central Asia Becomes A Nuclear-Weapon-Free-Zone: by William C. Potter, Togzhan Kassenova, and Anya Loukianova; Central Asian Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone Treaty ratification represents a nuclear disarmament and nonproliferation milestone.
Image: Central Asian Nuclear Weapon Free Zone (CANWFZ) Map
Posted: November 5, 2008 Trafficking Networks for Chemical Weapons Precursors: Lessons from the Iran-Iraq War of the 1980s [PDF]: by Jonathan B. Tucker; New information on the illicit sale of chemical-weapons materials to Iran and Iraq during the 1980s sheds light on how international trafficking networks operate and suggests some practical steps for countering them. A new CNS Occasional Paper.
Image: Cover of Occasional Paper #13
Posted: October 23, 2008 Beyond UNSCR 1540: the Forging of a WMD Terrorism Treaty: by Johan Bergenäs; A number of factors, including US presidential elections, may open opportunities to negotiate a treaty combating WMD terrorism and initiate steps toward nuclear weapons disarmament.
Image: Symbol of Peace & Disarmament, UN building New York
Posted: October 14, 2008 Iran and the IAEA: The Road to "Gridlock" and an Uncertain Path Forward: A way out of the present stalemate over the Iran nuclear issue is only possible through a pragmatic approach from Washington and more flexibility from Tehran.
Image: IAEA's ElBaradei & Iran's Ambassador Soltaniyeh [Src: IAEA]
Posted: September 25, 2008 Barack Obama and John McCain on Nuclear Security Issues: In their September 26, 2008, debate on U.S. foreign policy, both candidates discussed the dangers of nuclear proliferation. This CNS report examines the similarities and some important differences in the policies of Obama and McCain.
Image: Senators Barack Obama and John McCain
Posted: September 9, 2008 Strengthening a Weak Link in the Global Security Chain: Regional Implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1540: New book Implementing Resolution 1540: The Role of Regional Organizations by UNIDIR and CNS distinguished professor Lawrence Scheinman (editor).
Image: Implementing 1540 book cover
Posted: August 5, 2008 Missile Contagion: Cruise Missile Proliferation and the Threat to International Security [PDF]: New book by CNS missile expert Dennis Gormley finds U.S. unprepared to meet growing threat from proliferation of cruise missiles.
Image: Missile Contagion book cover
Posted: June 18, 2008 Pilot Course on International Nuclear Safeguards Policy in Monterey: A two-week course was taught by CNS and the Monterey Institute with presentations by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Brookhaven National Laboratory, and others.
Image: Class photo

Posted: June 13, 2008 Report on NWFZ in the Middle East: New report from the Monterey Nonproliferation Strategy Group on the issue of Preconditions for a NWFZ in the Middle East.
Image: MNSG members
Posted: June 10, 2008 NPT Briefing Book, 2008 Edition: The most comprehensive source of background and reference material on the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and its associated regime is now available online.
Image: Palais des Nations in Geneva
Posted: May 22, 2008 International Reactions: What if Israel Attacks Iran?: An Israeli military strike on Iran's nuclear facilities would divide the international community, despite any potential consensus against Tehran's suspected nuclear program.
Image: Israeli F-16s [Src: http://www.iaf.org.il]
Promoting Disarmament and Nonproliferation Education: On April 30, 2008, a seminar promoting disarmament and nonproliferation education was held for the first time as a side event in conjunction with the NPT PrepCom.
Image: DNPE seminar panelists
Posted: April 15, 2008 Preparing for 2010: Striking a Balance between Nuclear Disarmament & Nuclear Nonproliferation: CNS hosted a two-day diplomatic workshop on the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) on 7 and 8 March 2008 in Annecy, France.
Image: CNS Annecy Workshop
Posted: April 11, 2008 Pelindaba Treaty Resource Page: On the 12th anniversary of the signing in Cairo of the African Nuclear Weapon Free Zone Treaty, CNS announces a new web-based "Pelindaba Treaty resource page."
Image: Pelindaba Nuclear Facility
Posted: April 4, 2008 Taiwan's Presidential Election and its Impact on Cross-Strait Relations and Regional Security: Taiwan's recent elections will likely be an important turning point for Taipei's relations with China, the U.S. and Japan.
Image: Ma Ying-jeou after election victory
Posted: March 31, 2008 The Race Towards Entry Into Force of the Pelindaba Treaty: Mozambique Leading the Charge: Mozambique's recent ratification of the Pelindaba Treaty has renewed hope that a NWFZ in Africa may soon be realized.
Image: Pelindaba Nuclear Facility
Posted: March 7, 2008 The Future of the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: The current budgetary crisis at the PrepCom for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization threatens to further diminish prospects for the CTBT's entry into force. However, recent political developments may breathe new life into the treaty.
Image: Mushroom cloud from the Ivy Mike Nuclear Test [Src: Wikipedia]
Posted: February 29, 2008 SPECIAL REPORT ON RICIN [PDF]: In light of the discovery today (February 29) of vials of ricin in Las Vegas, Nevada, CNS has compiled a special information page with details about ricin and previous incidents involving the toxin.
Image: Castor beans. [Src: Steve Hurst @ USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database]
Posted: February 18, 2008 Study Finds U.S. Intelligence Community Confidence in Iran's Chemical Weapons Capability Has Diminished Steadily Since 2003 [PDF]: Despite arguing for years that Iran had an active and growing chemical weapons program, U.S. intelligence in 2003 began to back away from such definitive assessments, a shift gone largely unnoticed and unremarked by policy makers and specialists alike.
Image: U.S. Director of National Intelligence, Mike McConnell. [Src: Radio Free Europe]
Posted: January 8, 2008 Top Ten Most Significant Events & Trends of 2007 [PDF]: There were a number of important and even surprising nonproliferation-related developments during 2007. CNS offers a top 10 list of the most significant events and trends in 2007, both as a guide to the year just passed and as a road map for what to watch for in 2008.
Image: Earth from space [Src: Nasa]

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The Nonproliferation Review

The Nonproliferation Review is a refereed journal concerned with the spread of nuclear, chemical, biological, and conventional weapons. Featuring viewpoints, articles and reports on programs, treaties and export controls, terrorism, and the economic and environmental effects of weapons proliferation.

View Volume 15.3 · Nov 2008

Inventory of International Nonproliferation Organizations & Regimes

The Inventory of International Nonproliferation Organizations & Regimes is a regularly-updated public reference covering all international organizations, treaties, and agreements relevant to WMD disarmament & nonproliferation.

It provides descriptions & summaries of:

organizations
treaties & agreements
recent activities
contact information

View the Inventory...

Ongoing Issues

Nuclear-Weapon-Free-Zone Clearinghouse: An overview of the most important features of NWFZs and links to basic resources and documents.
[Treaties/Regimes]
Pelindaba Treaty Resource Page: On the 12th anniversary of the signing in Cairo of the African Nuclear Weapon Free Zone Treaty, CNS announces a new web-based "Pelindaba Treaty resource page."
[Treaties/Regimes]
Global Partnership Resources: Includes The Multilateral Nuclear Environmental Program in the Russian Federation (MNEPR), and Funding Commitments chart.
[Treaties/Regimes]
The Soviet Anti-Plague System: The history of the AP system, covering the period from the late 19th century onwards, including its accomplishments, organization, work programs, and responsibilities.
[Chem/Bio]
NPT Resources: Updated with selection of important analytical papers and other NPT resource material in view of the 2007 Preparatory Committee meeting for the 2010 Nuclear Non-proliferation Review Conference.
[Treaties/Regimes]