This week, APLN contributors reflect on the symbolic importance of the famous Doomsday Clock moving closer to midnight, propose ways to move nuclear disarmament talks forward, and look at the risks a new North Korean nuclear weapons test may pose to China.

Gareth Evans warns that the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists’ decision to set the hands of its famous Doomsday Clock to just 90 seconds to midnight, the closest they have ever been in the clock’s history, is a wake-up call the world cannot ignore.

Also, Sylvia Mishra calls on the nuclear-weapon states to focus on nuclear weapons risk reduction measures as an interim way to regain the trust of the non-nuclear-weapon states. Doing so not only would enhance security, but it would also help revive multilateral disarmament and non-proliferation talks, she argues.

And in a new Korea Times column, Yun Sun argues that a new nuclear weapons test by North Korea would be a provocation aimed at the US and its allies, but it could prove to be an even bigger problem for China. She explains that a nuclear test would widen the rift between China and South Korea, the opposite of what Beijing is trying to achieve in the region. We also highlight members’ activities below.

Gareth Evans, APLN Board member and former Foreign Minister of Australia, warns that it’s highly probable that nuclear weapons will be used again at some point in the future; thus, the decision by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists to move the hands of its famous Doomsday Clock to just 90 seconds to midnight is a wake-up call for the world to finally rid itself of these weapons.

Sylvia Mishra, Senior Nuclear Policy Associate at the Institute for Security and Technology, argues that in the midst of weakening nuclear disarmament initiatives and the rising risk of proliferation, the nuclear-weapon states must focus on risk reduction measures as a necessary and progressive way forward. Focusing on risk reduction, she says, fosters greater trust while preventing crises among nuclear-weapon states from escalating.

Yun Sun, Senior Fellow and Director of the China Program at the Stimson Center, argues that a new nuclear weapons test by North Korea could result in negative geopolitical consequences for China. As Sun explains, up to now China has taken a nuanced view of North Korea’s nuclear weapons programme, acknowledging that it’s problem but one that conversely provides some strategic leverage for China. More recently, however, Sun says China’s views are changing. Beijing, she argues, must now worry that further nuclear provocations by the North will only draw South Korea and the US (and Japan) closer together, ultimately damaging China’s strategic security goals and national interests.