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Article: Nukes on trial. (World Court initiative on nuclear weapons) (includes related articles on the World Court Project and quotes from the discussion)
- Article from:
- Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
- Article date:
- March 1, 1996
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1996 Educational Foundation for Nuclear Science, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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When the U.N. General Assembly unanimously called for "the elimination from national armaments of atomic weapons" in 1946, there was only one nuclear power and the number of atomic weapons could be counted on the fingers of one hand. Today there are eight nuclear powers and the world arsenal numbers at least 40,000 weapons. In the United Nations and in the context of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), the five "declared" nuclear states have successfully resisted efforts to subject their monopoly to international control, conceding only an NPT obligation - with no deadline - to reduce nuclear arsenals with the "ultimate" goal of their elimination.
Frustrated ...