Disarmament Diplomacy
Issue No. 43, January - February 2000
Launching The All-Party Group
By Malcolm Savidge MP
In January an All-Party Group on Global Security and
Non-Proliferation was established in the British Parliament at
Westminster.
At the group's inaugural meeting I recalled attending a dinner
in the Guildhall in 1993, addressed by then British cabinet
minister, David Mellor MP (Conservative). Some other British
politicians were present, mostly conservatives, including Margaret
Thatcher. The minister spoke movingly about attending school during
the Cuban missile crisis and wondering not only whether he would
ever see his home again, but whether life as he knew it was about
to come to an end. He referred to the vivid fear of the risk of a
nuclear holocaust that had lived with him through adulthood. He
also praised the vital role in lifting that horror played by
Mikhail Gorbachev, guest of honour at the dinner, in ending the
Cold War and reversing the nuclear arms race.
The minister's story was a stark reminder of how near we may
already have come to disaster. It may also serve as a reminder that
the desire to avert tragedy can and should transcend party politics
- and indeed all other divisions of creed or nationality.
The commonly shared hope in the early 1990s that the world had
decisively put the threat posed by weapons of mass destruction
(WMD) behind it now appears less secure. Complacency that this 'old
issue' had been 'settled' still seems to render the mass media and
much of the public deaf to warnings of renewed dangers coming from
across the political spectrum.
Opportunities have been missed in the last decade. If the
increasingly hawkish positions being expressed by politicians in
Russia and the US prevail, and China pursues weapons modernisation;
negotiation, confidence-building and non-proliferation could be
jeopardised. India and Pakistan have come perilously close to
nuclear conflict, illustrating the dangers of proliferation and
'localised' nuclear war. Nuclear materials and know-how are
spreading, with the attack by the Aum sect on the Japanese subway
providing a salutary reminder of the growing threat from religious
and political terrorism.
Even a terrorist outrage could cause thousands or even millions
of deaths. 'Localised' nuclear war could devastate continents. The
probability of terrorism or localised conflict involving WMD is far
too high. As for the ultimate disaster, we only have to remember
that at the height of the Cuban missile crisis US President Kennedy
feared that he had lost control of events and that the probability
of catastrophe was somewhere between a one-in-three and one-in-two
chance.
The purpose of the new all-party group will be to provide a
forum for discussion and debate on the basis of expert opinion and
will include use of an open agenda, and allow for the airing of
views from across the political spectrum. It will also aim to raise
awareness and publicise issues rather than campaign for particular
policies. The group will strive to provide an interesting programme
of speakers, as well as acting as a focal point for leading
international experts visiting Westminster to communicate with a
wider audience.
Where appropriate it will co-operate with other all-party groups
at Westminster. Given the influence that, for example, the Russian
Duma has had on ratification of the START II, and the US Senate on
the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), the group will also
explore the possibility of dialogue with overseas parliamentarians.
The magnitude of the risk from WMD means that it is time to put old
slogans behind us and to consider new ideas and proposals on
reducing the dangers.
Malcolm Savidge MP is Convener of the All-Party
Parliamentary Group on Global Security and
Non-Proliferation.
© 2000 The Acronym Institute.
Return to top of page
Return to List of Contents
Return to Acronym Main Page
|
