Nuclear Disarmament

A Norwegian Diplomat Disgraced; Covid Strikes the UN Security Council; Russia Fails to Promote Women’s Rights

October 31, 2020

A scandal involving a Norwegian diplomat erupts; Covid-19 rears its head at the United Nations; and who could become its 194th member state? Greetings from This Week @UN, highlights of the most important news on the world body. The information is drawn from the UN spokesperson’s briefings, our original reporting and other sources. Scoop: In …

General Assembly, Health and Population, Human Rights, Nuclear Disarmament, Security Council, This Week @UN

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UN75

Among World Leaders at UN’s 75th Commemoration, Trump Is a No-Show

September 21, 2020

by Evelyn Leopold

President Trump failed to deliver an expected video speech for the United Nations’ 75th anniversary commemoration. Instead, the acting deputy United States ambassador addressed the ceremony live from UN headquarters. From Washington, Secretary of State Michael Pompeo announced new sanctions against Iran during the UN anniversary remembrance, flanked by the US ambassador to the UN, …

General Assembly, Nuclear Disarmament, UN75, US Foreign Relations

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The Iran Nuclear Deal: What’s the US Going to Do Next?

September 15, 2020

by Evelyn Leopold

The Trump administration has attempted to trigger a 30-day-clock on extending an arms embargo on Iran that expires on Oct. 18. But the United States position, aimed at mandating all United Nations members to follow its lead, is opposed by most of the world. The embargo is part of Security Council Resolution 2231, adopted …

Nuclear Disarmament, Security Council

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The only talk show of its kind in the world

As Iran Allows the UN Access to Suspected Nuclear Sites, Its Uranium Stockpile Is Growing

September 7, 2020

by Stephanie Liechtenstein

VIENNA — The International Atomic Energy Agency has just reported that Iran’s stockpile of low-enriched uranium continues to grow. The stockpile now exceeds the limit set in the 2015 nuclear deal tenfold. According to the confidential quarterly IAEA report, distributed to member states on Sept. 4 and seen by PassBlue, as of Aug. 25, …

Middle East, Nuclear Disarmament, Security Council

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The US Gamble to Extend the Iran Arms Ban Fails. What’s Next?

August 14, 2020

by Evelyn Leopold

Doomed from the start, the United States asked the 14 other United Nations Security Council members to approve a resolution to extend an arms embargo on Iran that expires on Oct. 18. The embargo is part of the Security Council resolution adopted in 2015 that endorsed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), to …

Middle East, Nuclear Disarmament, US-UN Relations

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COVID-19

The IAEA Voices ‘Serious Concern’ Over Blocked Access to Certain Iranian Sites

June 8, 2020

by Stephanie Liechtenstein

VIENNA — The International Atomic Energy Agency issued an alarming report on June 5, voicing “serious concern” over Iran’s refusal to allow the agency’s inspectors to investigate two sites where the country is suspected of having conducted undeclared nuclear activities in the past. The report is unrelated to the agency’s quarterly updates on Iran’s …

Covid-19, Nuclear Disarmament, Security Council, US-UN Relations

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A Tapestry About Chernobyl and the UN’s Bungled Response to the Nuclear Disaster

September 11, 2019

by Stéphanie Fillion

The third floor of the United Nations headquarters in New York is coveted real estate for member states that have donated art to the organization. Not far from the Security Council Chamber and near the social hangout Express Bar, a giant tapestry hangs on a wall. A quick look reveals angels and demons, lightning …

General Assembly, Health and Population, Nuclear Disarmament

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SECURITY COUNCIL PRESIDENCY

Russia Is Busy as Security Council President, but Putin Is Staying Home

September 4, 2019

by Stéphanie Fillion

Russia is president of the United Nations Security Council in September just as nearly 200 heads of state and government and even a prince or two will soon travel to New York City to attend the opening session of the General Assembly. President Vladimir Putin will not be taking part in any event this …

Nuclear Disarmament, Security Council Presidency, US Foreign Relations

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Pompeo Finds Little Appetite at the UN for His Iran Strategy

August 20, 2019

by Dulcie Leimbach

In the middle of a muggy August afternoon in New York, the United Nations Security Council gathered once more to figure out how to “maintain peace and security” in the Middle East. But the recurring topic always leaves conversations wide open for interpretation by the Council’s 15 members. The concept by Poland as Council …

Middle East, Nuclear Disarmament, Security Council, US Foreign Relations, US-UN Relations

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The UK Flip-Flops on Gender Wording in UN Disarmament Discussions

October 15, 2018

by Laura E. Kirkpatrick

Negotiations in the United Nations General Assembly’s First Committee, which concentrates on disarmament, caused a Twitter row late last week after wording on gender stirred up strong feelings between powerful nongovernmental organizations and Britain, surprising other countries as well. The committee’s informal consultations, as they are technically called, are currently focusing on updating an …

Gender-Based Violence, Nuclear Disarmament

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P5 MONITOR

Sanctions in the Time of Temper Tantrums

October 7, 2018

by Enrico Carisch

John Bolton, whose white hair betrays the wisdom that a national security adviser to President Donald Trump should bring to his job, has threatened United States sanctions against judges of the International Criminal Court for adjudicating alleged war crimes committed by American forces in Afghanistan. However, frantic threats and hysterical big-power strutting does not …

Nuclear Disarmament, P5 Monitor, US Foreign Relations

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P5 MONITOR

The Perils of Kim-Trump Diplomacy on the UN Security Council

June 10, 2018

by Enrico Carisch

Could the Kim-Trump meeting in Singapore on Tuesday displace the United Nations Security Council’s mandate to regulate the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, as the United States succeeded in doing when it withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal? Chances of abolishing the UN sanctions regime on North Korea without the Council having the …

Nuclear Disarmament, P5 Monitor, Security Council, US Foreign Relations, US-UN Relations

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WORLDVIEWS

To Help the World Sleep Better, Salvage the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty

May 25, 2018

by Ben Donaldson

If United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo follows through with his threat to impose “the strongest sanctions in history” on Iran, the United States should be prepared for Iran to retaliate by withdrawing from the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. Last month, Ali Shamkhani, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security …

Nuclear Disarmament, US Foreign Relations, WORLDVIEWS

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P5 MONITOR

The Sanctions War Heats Up: US vs. the World

May 22, 2018

by Enrico Carisch

Mike Pompeo, in his first speech as Donald Trump’s new secretary of state, threatened United States’ allies: “You should know that we will hold those doing prohibited business in Iran to account.” Pompeo, speaking at the conservative Heritage Foundation in Washington, D.C., on May 21, is actually pitting the US against the United Nations, …

Middle East, Nuclear Disarmament, P5 Monitor, US Foreign Relations, US-UN Relations

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P5 MONITOR

Is This the End of the UN Security Council?

May 10, 2018

by Enrico Carisch

What can the five remaining signatories to the Iran nuclear deal do now that the Trump administration has trampled on Security Council Resolution 2231 and its 13 binding decisions, adopted under Article 41 of the United Nations Charter? Sooner or later, the other 14 members of the Security Council, especially Britain, China, France and …

Middle East, Nuclear Disarmament, P5 Monitor, US Foreign Relations, US-UN Relations

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Nuclear Disarmament

A Norwegian Diplomat Disgraced; Covid Strikes the UN Security Council; Russia Fails to Promote Women’s Rights

Among World Leaders at UN’s 75th Commemoration, Trump Is a No-Show

The Iran Nuclear Deal: What’s the US Going to Do Next?

As Iran Allows the UN Access to Suspected Nuclear Sites, Its Uranium Stockpile Is Growing

The US Gamble to Extend the Iran Arms Ban Fails. What’s Next?

The IAEA Voices ‘Serious Concern’ Over Blocked Access to Certain Iranian Sites

A Tapestry About Chernobyl and the UN’s Bungled Response to the Nuclear Disaster

Russia Is Busy as Security Council President, but Putin Is Staying Home

Pompeo Finds Little Appetite at the UN for His Iran Strategy

The UK Flip-Flops on Gender Wording in UN Disarmament Discussions

Sanctions in the Time of Temper Tantrums

The Perils of Kim-Trump Diplomacy on the UN Security Council

To Help the World Sleep Better, Salvage the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty

The Sanctions War Heats Up: US vs. the World

Is This the End of the UN Security Council?

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