Author: A. Stanley Thompson

Assessing the Trump-Kim Singapore Summit

by David Krieger

While the summit has relieved tensions between the two nuclear-armed countries, nuclear dangers have not gone away on the Korean Peninsula or in the rest of the world. These dangers will remain so long as any country, including the U.S., continues to rely upon nuclear weapons for its national security. Such reliance encourages nuclear proliferation and will likely lead to the use of these weapons over time – by malice, madness or mistake.

We can take some time to breathe a sigh of relief that nuclear dangers have lessened on the Korean Peninsula, but then we must return to seeking the complete abolition of nuclear weapons. An important pathway to this end is support for the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, adopted by the United Nations in 2017 and now open for state signatures and deposit of ratifications.

To read more, click here.

Young Voices on Peace with North Korea

by Alicia Sanders-Zakre and Catherine Killough

We spoke with young people around the world who saw hope in the summit, and a chance to advance their own work—including the reunion of families divided by conflict, the peaceful reunification of the Korean Peninsula, and a negotiated agreement that would lead toward the denuclearization of North Korea.

Captivated by North Korea’s nuclear tests and Trump’s reckless Twitter tirades, the media rarely pick up voices of the next generation. Young people and their work should inspire the United States to choose diplomacy over war and to pursue peace with North Korea. We decided not to ignore them this time.

To read more, click here.

On the 50th Anniversary of the Non-Proliferation Treaty: An Exercise in Bad Faith

by Alice Slater

On July 1, the 1968 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) turned 50 years old. In that agreement, five nuclear weapons states—the U.S., Russia, UK, France, and China—promised, a half a century ago, to make “good faith efforts” to give up their nuclear weapons, while non-nuclear weapons states promised not to acquire them.

It remains to be seen whether the NPT will continue to have relevance in light of the evident lack of integrity by the parties who promised “good faith” efforts for nuclear disarmament, and instead are all modernizing and inventing new forms of nuclear terror.

To read more, click here.

How Citizens Helped to End the Cold War: Inspiration for Today

by David Foglesong

Thirty years ago, when Ronald Reagan met with Mikhail Gorbachev in Moscow and said that he no longer considered the Soviet Union an “evil empire,” many observers began declaring that the Cold War was over. While the important roles of Reagan and Gorbachev in the ending of Soviet-American enmity are widely remembered, it is often forgotten that Soviet and American citizens played active roles in overcoming the suspicion and hostility that had marred relations between the two countries for decades. Today, when American-Russian relations have deteriorated so badly that many now speak of a “new cold war,” it is important to remember how citizens made a difference in the ending of the old Cold War.

Even before Reagan and Gorbachev met for the first time at Geneva in November 1985, many Americans and Soviets launched initiatives to try to ease tensions between their nations. American and Soviet citizens were thus not merely observers of the end of the Cold War; they helped to make it happen in their own homes and communities.

To read more, click here.

U.S. Continues Testing New B61-12 Nuclear Bomb

Despite its insistence that countries such as North Korea completely renounce nuclear weapons, the United States has continued to develop and test its new B61-12 nuclear gravity bomb at the Tonopah Test Range in Nevada.

The first full B61-12 nuclear gravity bomb is scheduled to be completed in 2020.

“NNSA, Air Force Complete Successful End-to-End B61-12 Life Extension Program Flight Tests at Tonopah Test Range,” National Nuclear Security Administration, June 29, 2018.

Downwinders Testify Before Congress

The impacts of uranium mining and nuclear testing persist today in many areas around the world. Communities neighboring uranium mines or downwind from nuclear test sites experience rates of cancer and other related health conditions that are truly debilitating–a multigenerational threat. While the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act has provided limited financial compensation for those exposed before 1972, provisions in the Act exclude communities impacted by dangerous radiation exposure after that time.

On June 27, numerous representatives of these communities testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee. They spoke in support of a bill that would expand eligibility for compensation and support.

Bryan Pietsch, “Navajo, Others Testify for Bill to Expand Protections for ‘Downwinders’,” Cronkite News, June 27th, 2018.

Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un Meet in Singapore

Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un met at a high-profile summit in Singapore on June 12. The two leaders signed a vaguely-worded document about denuclearization and security guarantees, and also promised that further meetings would take place between the two nations. The Singapore Summit marked the first time a sitting U.S. president met with the leader of North Korea.

Julian Borger, “Kim Jong-un Pledges Nuclear Disarmament at Summit with Trump,” The Guardian, June 12, 2018.

Trump and Putin to Meet in Finland on July 16

Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin will hold a summit in Helsinki on July 16. The summit was announced following a June 27 meeting between Putin and U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton.

“Your visit to Moscow gives us hope that we can make at least the first steps toward restoring full-scale relations between our countries,” Putin told Bolton at the opening of their meeting.

Russia and the United States together possess over 90% of the nearly 15,000 nuclear weapons in the world. Both countries are aggressively modernizing their nuclear arsenals.

Henry Meyer and Stepan Kravchenko, “Trump Gives Russia a Pass on Meddling, Announces July 16 Putin Summit,” Bloomberg, June 28, 2018.

U.S. and South Korea Indefinitely Suspend Some War Games

Following the June 12 Singapore Summit between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un, the United States and South Korea have agreed to indefinitely suspend many joint military exercises. These suspensions include Freedom Guardian, as well as two Korean Marine Exchange Program training exercises. Additional suspensions may be made depending on productive negotiations with North Korea.

At a news conference following the June 12 summit, Trump said, “The war games are very expensive, we pay for the majority of them.” He continued, “Under the circumstances, that we’re negotiating … I think it’s inappropriate to be having war games.”

Idrees Ali, “Pentagon Indefinitely Suspends Some Training Exercises with South Korea,” Reuters, June 22, 2018.

Hawaii Emergency Officials Slept on the Job

A staff member from the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency has reported that employees of the agency watched movies and even slept on the job. The agency suffered scrutiny after an employee mistakenly sent out an alert warning of a ballistic missile attack last January. The employee mistook a drill for a real threat and terrified the public by releasing an emergency text message alert.

Lack of training and preparedness are cited as key concerns from Hawaii state workers employed at the Agency. In addition to concerns around the distractions of workers, one employee has highlighted the need for the Agency to cancel erroneous alerts. The call for systems of cancellation are seen as all the more important now considering the threat of human error and the widespread panic that can ensue within communities on the ground.

“Workers of Hawaii Agency That Sent False Missile Alert Allegedly Slept on Duty,” CBS News, June 28, 2018.

Germany Wants New Planes to be Nuclear-Capable

Germany has information from the United States about the requirements for carrying U.S. nuclear weapons aboard their new Eurofighter Typhoon jets. The United States has not publicly answered the request, but it would likely be another 7-10 years before the Eurofighter is certified for nuclear missions.

The Eurofighter is part of Germany’s multi-billion euro plan to replace the current fleet of 89 Tornados. The U.S. is encouraging the increased spending on defense within Europe and is working to maintain a spot in European defense projects after “25 EU governments signed a pact in December to fund, develop and deploy armed forces together.”

Germany is one of five nations that hosts U.S. nuclear weapons on its territory. The other nations are Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands, and Turkey.

Andrea Shalal, “Germany Wants to Know if the U.S. Will Let it Carry Nuclear Weapons on its New Fighter Jets,” Business Insider, June 20, 2018.

This Month in Nuclear Threat History

History chronicles many instances when humans have been threatened by nuclear weapons. In this article, Jeffrey Mason outlines some of the threats that have taken place in the month of July, including U.S. President Donald Trump’s July 20, 2017 comment to high-ranking military officials that he wanted a ten-fold increase in the nuclear arsenal.

To read Mason’s full article, click here.

For more information on the history of the Nuclear Age, visit NAPF’s Nuclear Files website.

The Marshall Islands and the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons

The Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) is one of the nations most impacted by the devastating effects of nuclear weapons. From 1946-58, the United States tested 67 nuclear weapons on RMI territory. The environmental and health consequences were catastrophic, and continue to this day.

In June 2018, Harvard Law School’s International Human Rights Clinic (IHRC) published a paper detailing how the RMI’s membership in the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons would be compatible with its Compact of Free Association with the United States.

The RMI parliament is currently debating whether or not to sign the treaty. The IHRC paper argues that the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and the Compact of Free Association are legally compatible. The authors encourage the RMI to sign the treaty, and urge the United States to respect the RMI’s sovereign decision.

To read the full paper, click here.

Missile Defense Featured in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

The July issue of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists looks at the expensive and ineffective—yet potentially destabilizing—international pursuit of ballistic missile defense with the help of an extraordinary lineup of the world’s top missile defense experts. The United States has spent tens of billions of dollars on ground-based missile defense, and no one is sure the system it bought can ever work, even against smaller nuclear countries like North Korea.

This issue is free to access online through August 2018.

Click here to access the issue.

Weapon-Free Mutual Funds

As part of its Divest from the War Machine campaign, Codepink has created a new website to track which mutual funds are involved in militarism and gun violence.

The campaign website states, “Aligning investments with values requires that you know what you own – but it’s almost impossible to know what individual companies you own if you’re invested through mutual funds. We’re starting to change that. It’s easy to feel powerless in the face of giant corporations, but you can harness your personal economic power to confront big business.”

Click here to visit the site.

Evening for Peace to Honor Current Nobel Peace Laureate

On October 21, 2018, the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation will honor the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) and Beatrice Fihn, ICAN’s Executive Director, at the 34th Annual Evening for Peace.

ICAN was awarded the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize for its efforts to bring about the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which was adopted at the United Nations in July of last year.

The event will take place in Santa Barbara, California. For more information about tickets and sponsorship opportunities, please call the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation at +1 805-965-3443.

Sadako Peace Day on August 6

On August 6, the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation will hold its 24th annual Sadako Peace Day commemoration at La Casa de Maria in Montecito, California. This will be one of the first public events at La Casa de Maria since the catastrophic mudslides that devastated the retreat center and many other places in Montecito. Twenty-three lives were lost in the disaster. This year, we will reflect on the local situation in addition to remembering the victims of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and all innocent victims of war.

The event, featuring music, poetry, and more, will take place from 6:00 – 7:00 p.m. It is free and open to the public. For more information, click here.

New NAPF Annual Report Now Available

The Nuclear Age Peace Foundation has published its latest annual report with the title “We Can Change the World.” The report highlights the Foundation’s key achievements in 2017.

From our global work as part of the Nobel Peace Prize-winning International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons and the negotiations for the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, to the impressive foothold our Peace Literacy initiative has taken in communities around the United States and Canada, there is much momentum for NAPF to build on for the future.

The annual report also features an article about our Director of Programs, Rick Wayman, meeting Pope Francis last November, and an interview with one of our outstanding 2017 summer interns, Megan Cox.

To download a copy of our annual report, click here.

Paul K. Chappell to be Keynote Speaker at Business Conference

Paul K. Chappell, NAPF’s Peace Literacy Director, will give the keynote speech at the Gianneschi Leadership Institute on August 16. The speech is part of a week-long G3X Conference, which provides a forum for networking, continuing education and innovation for current and aspiring social-profit practitioners. The conference will take place at the Mihaylo College of Business at California State University Fullerton.

For more information, click here.

Peace Literacy in Florida and Maine

NAPF’s Paul K. Chappell will travel to Florida in July and Maine in August to provide important trainings to local teachers, students, activists, and others.

Paul will headline three days of events in Pompano Beach, Florida from July 20-22. Events include a lecture on “Our Human Needs and the Tangles of Trauma” and a day-long Peace Literacy workshop. For more information, click here.

Unity of Greater Portland, Maine is sponsoring a five-day Peace Literacy workshop led by Chappell from August 5-10. For more information about this workshop, click here.

The U.S. Must End Its Support for the War in Yemen

The United States is backing what is currently the world’s worst humanitarian disaster. Recently, the Saudi-led coalition, with support from the U.S., has been bombarding the Yemeni port city of Hodeidah. In a country already suffering greatly from this prolonged war, this attack on Yemen’s main port is preventing vital humanitarian aid supplies from getting to those who desperately need them.

At least 15,000 civilians have already been killed in the war. Up to a million Yemenis have been affected by cholera. The UN reports that 10.6 million Yemenis are on the verge of starvation. At least 22 million Yemenis–80% of the country’s population–rely on the aid that comes through Hodeidah.

Please contact your Representative and Senators today and tell them to demand a halt to U.S. support for this large-scale humanitarian disaster.

Click here to take action.

“The indefinite combination of human fallibility and nuclear weapons carries a high risk of catastrophe. Is there a military justification for continuing to accept that risk? The answer is no.”

— Robert S. McNamara, former U.S. Secretary of Defense. This quote appears in the book Speaking of Peace: Quotations to Inspire Action, which is available to purchase in the NAPF Peace Store.

“Forcing desperate young parents to surrender custody of their weeping children because they were unable to comply with restrictive immigration rules is a disgrace to our great country. Such cruelty should be condemned as a crime against humanity.”

— Ben Ferencz, a prosecutor at the Nuremberg Tribunals and member of the NAPF Advisory Council, speaking about President Trump’s policy of separating families at the border.

“Seventy years of division and hostility, however, have cast a dark shadow that makes it difficult to believe what is actually taking place before our very eyes.”

— South Korean President Moon Jae-in, referring to the progress being made to achieve peace on the Korean Peninsula.

Kate Fahey
David Krieger
MacKenzie Leger
Carol Warner
Rick Wayman

Violating the Iran Deal: Playing with Nuclear Fire

by David Krieger

President Trump has demonstrated yet again why he lacks the understanding, intelligence and temperament to be president of the United States. By violating the Iran nuclear deal, he is undermining the security of the U.S., our allies and the world.

America, beware. Trump has just fired another serious warning shot across the bow of democracy, one that bodes ill for the nuclear non-proliferation regime, for peace and for the future of our democratic institutions. Once again, Trump has shown clearly that he is not fit to be president, and his impeachment should be undertaken as a matter of urgency.

To read more, click here.

Men with Fragile Egos Should Not Have the World’s Faith Placed in Them

by Beatrice Fihn

We cannot rely on piecemeal agreements on nuclear weapons to guarantee our safety. Men with fragile egos should not have the world’s faith placed in them to solve these existential crises.

Instead, we already have a solution. These weapons are now prohibited by treaty, and it is a matter of getting every state on board. Last year 122 nations adopted the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons at the UN, and it is well on its way to becoming international law.

Quite simply, the possession of nuclear weapons by anyone is a grave humanitarian threat that we cannot countenance. South Koreans should not have to go to bed at night wondering if a Tweet sent from across the Pacific will mean they won’t wake up in the morning.

To read the full article at CNN, click here.

20 Years of Nuclear tests by India and Pakistan

by Kumar Sundaram

While the global diplomatic circuits, international media and opinion makers are busy discussing whether North Korea would de-nuclearize itself, or if Iran would go nuclear, there seems to be a complete silence this month as the world’s only nuclear-armed neighbors with ongoing conflicts complete 20 years of their nuclear tests conducted in May 1998.

The Doomsday Clock statement this year mentioned the “simmering tensions between nuclear-armed India and Pakistan.” It refers to the “threats of nuclear warfare” hanging in the background “as Pakistan and India faced each other warily across the Line of Control in Kashmir,” a reference to the surgical strikes by the Indian military across the LoC on September 29.

To read more, click here.

Gaza: Grief, Horror, Outrage, Remembering

by Richard Falk

How can one not feel intense grief for the young Palestinians who out of despair and fury joined the Great March of Return, and so often found death and severe injury awaiting them as they approached the border unarmed!!?

This was not a gratuitous event, or something that happened spontaneously on either side. After 70 years of Palestinian suffering, with no end of torment in sight, to show the world and each other their passion was what would be seen as normal, even admirable, demonstrating a spirit of resistance that endured after decades of repression, violence, humiliation, and denial of the most fundamental of rights. After 70 years of Israeli statehood, this violent confirmation of our worst fears and perceptions, seals a negative destiny for Israel as far as the moral eye can see.

To read more, click here.

President Trump Decides to Unilaterally Violate Iran Nuclear Deal

On May 8, U.S. President Donald Trump pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal, reversing the 2015 agreement signed by former President Obama. Trump made his decision as “the fulfillment of a bedrock campaign promise and as the act of a dealmaker dissolving a fatally flawed agreement,” but has received much backlash from the international community as well as domestic, including a public rebuke from Obama.

As expressed by French President Emmanuel Macron, people fear that with Trump’s decision, “the international regime against nuclear proliferation is at stake.” It will also hold economic implications as the U.S. will return to strict sanctions against Iran and the countries that do business with Iran.

Mark Landler, “Trump Abandons Iran Nuclear Deal He Long Scorned,” The New York Times, May 8, 2018.

June 12 Summit Between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un Is Back On

On May 24, Donald Trump sent a letter to Kim Jong-un (see Quotes section, below) cancelling their June 12 summit in Singapore. However, after a multi-day visit to the United States by Kim Yong-chol, a former North Korean intelligence chief and top nuclear arms negotiator, Trump announced that the summit is back on.

Trump cited North Korea’s “open hostility” in the May 24 letter cancelling the summit. Just eight days later, on June 1, Trump said, “We’re over that, totally over that, and now we’re going to deal and we’re really going to start a process.”

Peter Baker, “Trump Announces Summit Meeting with Kim Jong-un Is Back On,” The New York Times, June 1, 2018.

Three Nations Ratify Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in May

During the month of May, three nations ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. Palau ratified on May 3, followed by Austria on May 8, and Vietnam on May 17. This brings the total number of ratifications to 10, with more expected in the coming weeks.

The treaty will enter into force once 50 countries ratify the treaty.

“Signature/Ratification Status of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons,” International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, May 31, 2018.

International Delegation of Women Gather in South Korea to Advocate for Peace

On May 25, peace activists, foreign policy experts, and ordinary Koreans rallied outside the U.S. embassy in South Korea to rebuke President Trump’s cancellation of the Trump- Kim summit. The protestors expressed fear that Trump’s cancellation of the summit will put the Korean Peninsula in greater danger, and urged him to reconsider diplomatic discussions.

“The people of both North and South Korea, and especially women, have worked too long and have come too close to reaching the first steps towards the signing of a Peace treaty to see the talks collapse,” said Christine Ahn, Korea expert and member of the NAPF Advisory Council. “We know that diplomacy can be difficult. However, peace in the Korean Peninsula cannot have any more setbacks. It’s been too long. It has been overdue more than 70 years.”

Jake Johnson, “Warning Against ‘Return to Rhetoric of Nuclear Annihilation,’ Koreans and Anti-War Voices Demand Trump Resume Peace Talks,” Common Dreams, May 25, 2018.

U.S. Expands Nuclear Arsenal While Demanding Others Disarm

On May 10, the Pentagon and Energy Department announced plans that seem to prepare “for an era of nuclear buildup.” The U.S. now plans to repurpose the Savannah River Site in South Carolina to annually produce at least 50 plutonium pits, the grapefruit-sized atom bomb that works as part of a chain reaction to ignite thermonuclear fuel and produce an explosion “1,000 times as powerful as the atomic bomb that destroyed Hiroshima.”

The Los Alamos National Laboratory is also expected to produce at least 30 plutonium pits per year.

David Sanger and William Broad, “As U.S. Demands Nuclear Disarmament, It Moves to Expand Its Own Arsenal,” The New York Times, May 14, 2018.

Air Force Nuclear Missile Guards Used LSD

Six airmen of the Air Force Nuclear Missile Corps at F.E. Warren Air Force Base were convicted for the use and/or distribution of LSD. These men, alongside the eight others that were punished, were in charge of guarding nuclear weapons considered to be “among the most powerful in America’s arsenal.” The accused service members were from the 90th Missile Wing, which operates one-third of the 400 Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles that are on constant high alert in underground silos scattered across the northern Great Plains.

“I absolutely just loved altering my mind,” one of the convicted airmen told the judge.

“Air Force Troops Guarding Nuclear Missiles Used LSD,” Los Angeles Times, May 24, 2018.

This Month in Nuclear Threat History

History chronicles many instances when humans have been threatened by nuclear weapons. In this article, Jeffrey Mason outlines some of the threats that have taken place in the month of June, including the June 28, 1958 test of a thermonuclear weapon by the United States in the Marshall Islands. The Oak test, at 8.9 megatons, or more than 600 times the power of the U.S. bomb that destroyed Hiroshima, was one of the largest nuclear explosions ever on Earth.

To read Mason’s full article, click here.

For more information on the history of the Nuclear Age, visit NAPF’s Nuclear Files website.

The Devastating Legacy of Nuclear Weapons Testing in the Pacific

Two new reports from Pace University’s International Disarmament Institute (one about Kiribati and the other focused on Fiji) detail the humanitarian, human rights and environmental impacts of the Kiritimati and Malden Island nuclear weapons tests. The reports also show how the 2017 Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), recently adopted by 122 governments at the United Nations, offers a groundbreaking framework for assisting victims and remediating environments contaminated by nuclear weapons testing in the Pacific.

Click here for the report about Kiribati, and here for the report about Fiji.

Poet Climbs Runit Dome to Expose Radioactive Legacy

Kathy Jetnil-Kijiner, an acclaimed poet and activist from the Marshall Islands, explores the nuclear testing legacy of the Marshall Islands through the legends and stories of Runit Island. This six-minute film is beautiful, powerful, and haunting.

Click here to watch the video.

Evening for Peace to Honor Current Nobel Peace Laureate

On October 21, 2018, the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation will honor the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) and Beatrice Fihn, ICAN’s Executive Director, at the 34th Annual Evening for Peace.

ICAN was awarded the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize for its efforts to bring about the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which was adopted at the United Nations in July of last year.

The event will take place in Santa Barbara, California. For more information about tickets and sponsorship opportunities, please call the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation at +1 805-965-3443.

Peace Literacy Spotlight: Canadian Educators and Students

NAPF Peace Literacy Director Paul K. Chappell recently traveled to Winnipeg for a number of important events with educators and students. Joining Chappell for educator events in Winnipeg were: Shari Clough, Oregon State University Professor, Phronesis Lab Director, and Peace Literacy Curriculum Coordinator; Colleen Works, Corvallis High School Vice-Principal and 2011 Oregon State Teacher of the Year; and Susan Radford, a middle school teacher in Everett, Washington who has been developing lesson plans for middle school students based on Chappell’s work.

Chappell and the Peace Literacy Team gave a one-day Peace Literacy workshop to over 70 participants from the Manitoba Department of Education and Training ICAB (Instruction, Curriculum, and Assessment Branch) and two days of Peace Literacy training to over 280 teachers, students, and administrators from across Canada at the National UNESCO Associated Schools Network Conference at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. Chappell also spoke to kindergartners and their fifth grade buddies on empathy and peace.

To read more about these exciting developments in Canada, click here.

Letter in the Los Angeles Times

On May 11, just a couple of days after President Trump announced that he will violate the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action with Iran, the Los Angeles Times published a letter to the editor by Rick Wayman, NAPF’s Director of Programs. Wayman pointed out the extreme hypocrisy of all of the parties involved in negotiating the deal with Iran, all of whom possess nuclear weapons themselves.

He wrote, “The problem runs much deeper than a demagogue who willfully and unnecessarily violated a multilateral deal that was working. Nuclear weapons are illegitimate tools of coercion and mass killing.”

He went on to praise the nations that are signing and ratifying the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which is an unmistakable signal of a country’s rejection of nuclear weapons.

To read the full letter, click here.

30th Annual DC Days

Representatives of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation participated in the Alliance for Nuclear Accountability’s 30th Annual DC Days lobbying event in Washington, DC from May 20-23. NAPF summer intern Kate Fahey joined Director of Programs Rick Wayman for a day of issue and lobbying training, followed by three days of meetings with members of Congress and key staffers on nuclear weapons and waste issues.

Over 60 experts and activists from around the U.S. took part in this year’s DC Days.

Disarmament Education Report Submitted to UN Secretary-General

The Nuclear Age Peace Foundation submitted a report to the United Nations Secretary-General on its disarmament education efforts from 2016-18. NAPF’s report will make up part of António Guterres’s report to the 73rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly.

NAPF highlighted its many publications by NAPF staff David Krieger, Rick Wayman, and Paul K. Chappell, the hundreds of public lectures on the need for nuclear weapons abolition and Peace Literacy, and engagement with students through NAPF’s internships and Peace Literacy Program.

To read NAPF’s report to the UN Secretary-General, click here.

“There is no time left for anything but to make peacework a dimension of our every waking activity.”

— Elise Boulding. This quote appears in the book Speaking of Peace: Quotations to Inspire Action, which is available to purchase in the NAPF Peace Store.

“When it comes to using a nuclear weapon, restraint is a good thing.”

— A letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell signed by 32 former national security officials regarding the proposed low-yield warhead for the U.S. submarine-launched ballistic missile.

“You talk about your nuclear capabilities, but ours are so massive and powerful that I pray to God they will never have to be used.”

— U.S. President Donald Trump in a letter to Kim Jong-un announcing Trump’s decision to cancel their June 12 summit in Singapore.

David Krieger
MacKenzie Leger
Carol Warner
Rick Wayman