Open Forum
New Delhi, 16 March 2011
Global Nuclear
Disarmament
URGENT EFFECTIVE STEPS
NEEDED
By Dr Venkateshwaran
Sr Lecturer, Dept of
Geopolitics & Intl Relations, Manipal
University
In a major speech in Prague in April 2009, US President Barack Obama outlined
his vision of a world free of nuclear weapons by calling for a global summit on
nuclear security by forging new partnerships.
Subsequently, the US and
Russia signed the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty in March 2010 to reduce deployed
strategic nuclear warheads to 1,550 in seven years and deployed long-range
missiles and bombers to 700 in an effort to demonstrate Washington and Moscow’s
leadership on arms control and represent a tangible start to implementing a
comprehensive nuclear security agenda.
The latest call for
disarmament becomes significant in the context of the emergence of two contemporary
threats to the international security environment. The first is the increasing
possibility of nuclear weapons falling into the hands of non-State actors. The
second is the persistent efforts by a number of countries to acquire fissile
materials and attendant technology.
Importantly, the growing
political and economic instability in countries like Pakistan,
Afghanistan, Iraq, and the
other Arab countries has further threatened the international security
environment. Increasingly, countries have begun to perceive nuclear potential
as adding to their great power status.
With the strategic
nuclear ideology of mutual deterrence for maintaining peace and order gaining
increasing credibility, it has in turn become an insurmountable obstacle
towards achieving global nuclear disarmament.
Hence, is general and
complete disarmament a realistic pre-condition for reorganising international
life on more civilized principles?
Interestingly, if ever
there is a crucial gateway towards kick starting disarmament efforts, it is Asia. The region has two conflicting nuclear powers in India and Pakistan. Add to this, the
increasing competition across different spheres between a rapidly growing India and China.
Further, Pakistan, Iran
and North Korea
are reported to be pro-actively looking to acquire more fissile materials. What
role does India
envisage for itself in this environment?
India can lay strong claims to
leading global disarmament efforts. Disarmament was one of the core principles
in the evolution of New Delhi’s
foreign policy in 1947. India’s
non- alignment policy during the Cold War helped it to emerge as a leader of
the Third World.
Today, India is
growing at a rapid pace with its cheap labour, democratic values, political
stability, impressive economic growth and a huge market that is attracting the
developed world. Therefore, it stands in a unique diplomatic position of a
country, which has emerged from the developing group, poised to take a leap
into the developed group.
Crucially, nuclear
disarmament continues to be an issue of vital importance for India with a nuclear Pakistan,
politically and economically unstable, and an unpredictable China in its
neighbourhood. Recently, Pakistan
has secured approval from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for
setting up two more nuclear reactors in the Chasma nuclear facility.
The development is
significant since it confirms the strengthening of ties between Islamabad and Beijing,
which will supply nuclear reactors to Pakistan. The IAEA gave its nod to Pakistan overlooking the objections raised by India that the
China-Pakistan deal for setting up two nuclear reactors violated the Nuclear Suppliers
Group (NSG) guidelines, which restrict the transfer of such technology to
nations that run a strategic nuclear programme.
Pertinently, recall that India got an exemption from the NSG in view of
its civil nuclear deal with the US
and other countries. Thereby, also announcing its emergence as a de facto nuclear power.
Besides, complete
disarmament does not appear a realistic pre-condition today. If India is
harbouring any intentions of emerging as a global player in the near future; it
will be called upon to play a pro-active role on disarmament. Thus, New Delhi’s efforts, in
the short run, must be concentrated towards partial and phased disarmament to
reduce nuclear weapons around the globe. This will, at least, decrease the chances
of nuclear technology falling into the wrong hands in the immediate future.
Additionally, in the
medium run, it should push hard diplomatically for a universal “no first use
policy” which will further provide minimum mutual deterrence. The key focus, in
the long run, however, must be to create an effective regime and a strategy
through the Nuclear Weapons Convention (NWC) that strengthens mutual trust and
political will among countries to ensure non-proliferation. Here, it must take a
cue from President Obama’s Prague speech to enlist the US as an active partner
to lead global disarmament efforts.
In a “real politik” world, if the process towards partial and phased
disarmament needs to achieve realistic success, India will have to ensure that
the five Permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) work
under the umbrella of the United Nations.
For this, the first step
would be to credibly establish the impartiality of the UN decision making process
globally. The expansion of the UNSC by providing permanent seats to countries
like Brazil, India, Japan and Germany will go a long way in kick starting the
first step towards nuclear disarmament.
----- INFA
(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)
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