Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation

Nukes in the Snowflake Blizzard

by Robert G. Gard [contact information]

Published on Huffington Post on December 17, 2008

Snowflakes have begun falling on Washington, D.C. And I don't mean the kind that will have us all humming along to Bing Crosby. I'm talking about Donald Rumsfeld-style snowflakes, the endless stream of memos the former Secretary of Defense used to churn out to his Pentagon subordinates, often at a clip of 20 to 60 per day.

Every think tank, non-profit, trade association, and lobbyist in town has produced a set of policy recommendations for the incoming Obama administration. In an unprecedented effort to cultivate transparency, the transition team is posting all of these memos on its website. As of December 15, there were 356 groups listed, several of which submitted multiple documents.

Competition for the transition team's attention is obviously fierce, nowhere more so than in the field of foreign policy. Which brings me to the good news and the bad news.

The bad news is that I come bearing yet another policy memo for Team Obama. The good news is that my recommendations are the result of a yearlong series of meetings that convened 60 scientists, academics, members of Congress, senior congressional staffers, and representatives from advocacy groups, think tanks, and foundations to assess the priorities for the next administration on nuclear arms control and non-proliferation.

In other words, these recommendations are not just what I think. They are the consensus of many notable policy and political experts, an arms control brain trust. A list of participants is available with our report, which is now available online.

Here are the top three recommendations:

1. Provide a new direction on nuclear weapons policy that emphasizes "minimum deterrence," extend the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START), and signal intent to pursue negotiations with Russia on further reductions.

• Issue a statement explaining a new vision for nuclear weapons policy and guidance for the 2009 Nuclear Posture Review. The statement should include the intent to pursue nuclear weapons reductions and a reiteration that the only role for nuclear weapons is "minimum deterrence" - deterring the use of nuclear weapons against the United States or U.S. allies.
• Extend START I and begin bilateral negotiations with Russia on further permanent, legally-binding, and verifiable reductions toward a goal of 1,000 deployed and non-deployed nuclear weapons per side or fewer. Send a special envoy to Russia or appoint a working group to signal U.S. intent to maintain verification provisions and move toward further reductions.

2. Announce intent to secure all vulnerable fissile material in four years as the best way to reduce the risk of nuclear terrorism. Accelerate and prioritize these efforts accordingly and appoint a senior official to coordinate threat reduction efforts.

3. Announce intent to seek ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) and begin working to build the bipartisan support in the Senate needed for approval.

We all know that President Bush significantly weakened U.S. leadership on nuclear weapons and spurred increased proliferation of nuclear weapons capabilities. Specific Bush administration policies that contributed to this failure include withdrawal from the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty; expansion of missile defense plans into Poland and the Czech Republic; efforts to develop three new types of nuclear weapons; emphasis on making nuclear weapons more usable; threatening nuclear weapons use against non-nuclear weapon states in violation of prior U.S. commitments; and repudiating key promises made at the 1995 and 2000 Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conferences.

Our full report explains how we believe Bush's failures can be rectified. While we hate to contribute to Washington's snowflake blizzard, the spread of nuclear weapons and materials is simply too grave of a threat to ignore. Strong American leadership is needed in order to meet current challenges from Iran, North Korea, and unsecured weapons and materials known as "loose nukes."

President Obama and the 111th Congress will have a historic opportunity to effectively address the threat of nuclear weapons and strengthen U.S. and international security starting on January 20, 2009. Help us spread the word that the time for action is now.