Policy Briefs

A Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone and the Pursuit of Cooperative Security in the Arctic
Indigenous communities and Arctic states have faced major challenges in establishing the Arctic as a nuclear-weapons-free zone (NWFZ).

Challenges and Opportunities for Extending NPT - Related Commitments to the Non-NPT States
Today only four states – India, Israel, North Korea and Pakistan – remain outside the NPT. Appropriate mechanisms must be put in place for non-NPT states to adopt disarmament measures.

The Urgent Need for Nuclear Risk Reduction in Asia
The expansion and modernization of nuclear weapons in Asia set against a backdrop of rising tensions has led to an urgent need to de-escalate and reduce nuclear danger in the region.

Living with the Bomb: The Public and Nuclear Weapons
Public activism has contributed to the non-use of nuclear weapons since 1945, but the voice of the people goes largely unnoticed in governments' policy making.

The High International Stake in the Iran Nuclear Talks
Iran's six-month deal set to expire in July draws comparisons to recent developments in Pakistan and North Korea. Dissuading Iran from nuclear acquisition may prove to be politically difficult.

Treaty Based Regimes as Stepping Stones to a Nuclear Weapon Free World
The Chemical Weapons Convention and the NPT demonstrated break-out frameworks for containing WMD threats.

Advancing Nuclear Disarmament: the US Role
The future of nuclear disarmament appears bleak, but a more assertive United States has the potential to make immense progress if adjustments to the nuclear force posture are adjusted.

Changing Nuclear Thinking in Pakistan
Fifteen years since the nuclear tests of 1998, changed sentiments about the atomic bomb have taken hold among the policymakers and the public in Pakistan.

Nuclear Arms Control: A Realistic Global Agenda
Gareth Evans emphasizes the need to re-energize both the nuclear nonproliferation and the nuclear disarmament agenda in a manner that could be embraced by all relevant players.

What Did India Gain Getting the Bomb?
Ramesh Thakur explores how the utility of India's nuclear weapons is questionable on many grounds.