Disarmament Diplomacy

Issue No. 27, June 1998

Editor's Introduction

The political aftershocks of May's nuclear tests by India and Pakistan form a major focus of June's issue: Documents and Sources features statements from the UN, the P-5, the G-8 and others, together with the responses from India and Pakistan; News Review reports on related developments, including Russia's controversial decision to provide nuclear reactors to India; and Richard W. Hu, from the University of Hong Kong, shares his thoughts on the way ahead, warning that the "international community should deal with the recent tests by India and Pakistan as a fait accompli... It would be disastrous for the future of the non-proliferation regime not to face up to this reality or try to wish it away." Rebecca Johnson's Geneva Update reports on the CD's deliberations about its priorities and agenda in the face of the changing non-proliferation environment.

The issue features two other guest contributions. Eric Arnett, from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), assesses what he identifies as a "confidence-building initiative" on the part of Iran. While welcoming this initiative, Arnett cautions that if it is to "bear fruit, it will have to address not only Iranian threat perceptions, but also the security concerns of other key actors in the region." From the Verification Technology Information Centre (VERTIC) in London, Suzanna van Moyland reports on the growing number of States concluding Additional Protocol agreements with the IAEA. The Additional Protocols are designed to strengthen the IAEA safeguards regime, and van Moyland considers the response to date, and responsibilities henceforth, of both nuclear-weapon States and non-nuclear-weapon States.

In addition to covering the issue of the India and Pakistan tests, Documents and Sources includes a statement issued by 8 States - Brazil, Egypt, Ireland, Mexico, New Zealand, Slovenia, Slovakia and Sweden - calling for a new nuclear disarmament agenda; joint statements on arms control issues from the US-China Summit; wide-ranging speeches on disarmament issues from the UN Secretary-General and US Secretary of State; the new European Union Code of Conduct on Arms Exports; and US Congressional testimony on satellite export policy. News Review includes coverage of the growing controversy surrounding the satellite-export issue in the US; the widely-lamented decision of the Russian Duma to delay START II ratification hearings until the Autumn; and ominous signs of strain and acrimony in both US-North Korea and UN-Iraq relations.

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