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No Nukes: The U.N. Commission on Weapons of Mass Destruction Wants Disarmament

Before the U.S. invaded Iraq, did you believe the latter was harboring weapons of mass destruction (WMDs)? Did your opinion of the Iraq War change when these weapons were not found? How important is the existence of these WMDs today?

New report

On June 1, 2006, the U.N. Commission on Weapons of Mass Destruction presented U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan with its report on WMDs, including its conclusion that Iraq has not had biological, chemical, or nuclear weapons materials since 1994.

The commission's investigation confirms findings by David Kay, the former U.S. Chief Weapons Inspector. However, some political analysts insist that the weapons may have been transported out of Iraq by Russian special forces before the U.S. invasion.

The probable absence of WMDs in Iraq complicates our presence there. Is the war justified? Many say Sadaam Hussein's brutality was reason enough to invade. But that's not the reason that the White House and Pentagon gave us. Members of Congress understood that Hussein was likely housing weapons of mass destruction when they voted to take us to war.

But the commission's report does not center on Iraq. Its main theme is the reduction and eventual elimination of all biological, chemical, and nuclear weapons around the world.

No nukes

The overarching theme of the report is that weapons of mass destruction are inhumane and should be eliminated. Commission Chairman Hans Blix explains that countries with nuclear weapons, such as the United States, should take the lead by signing a treaty to ban nuclear testing. The commission feels that, like chemical and biological weapons, nuclear weapons should be banned. They say it is merely a matter of time before nuclear weapons create a catastrophe, intended or accidental.

The report argues for a WMD-free zone in the Middle East (Iran and Israel are suspected of having nuclear weapons) and for the removal of 480 US NATO weapons remaining in Europe.

Further, the commission would like to see a "world summit on disarmament, non proliferation, and terrorist use of weapons of mass destruction."

It takes time

It took about fifty years to ban chemical weapons and about seventy to outlaw biological ones. Though chemical and biological weapons still exist, their proliferation is much less of a threat than the spread of nuclear weapons.

Nuclear-weapons are hardly state-of-the-art (it's essentially 1940s technology), but states want to develop them for defense and for "prestige," as Patricia Lewis, director of the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research, explains. Since dominant countries like the U.S. hold onto their nuclear weapons, she says, smaller nations are encouraged to develop them.

Blix and the commission would like the U.S. to begin a serious campaign to reduce its own nuclear weapons supply, a tactic that they say would encourage the other Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT) countries (Russia, UK, France, and China), as well as those outside the treaty (India, Pakistan, Israel) to disarm.

What do you think?

Are Blix and the commission being realistic? Is it too late for the world to disarm? How important is it to you for the U.S. to go to war under either false or mistaken premises? What specifically should our leadership do to prevent nuclear war?

Your input matters

Your representatives DO care what you think. Especially now -- 2006 is an election year and many representatives will be looking to reconnect with their constituents. Let your congressmen and women know what you think! Give your senators a piece of your mind! To find your reps, click here.

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Update Posted on: 6/17/2006