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<\/p>\nIn January 2015 the hands were moved to 3 minutes to midnight, the worst setting since the height of the Cold War in 1983. This year this setting was retained, \u201csince recent progress in the Iran nuclear agreement and the Paris climate accord constitute only small bright spots in a darker world situation full of potential for catastrophe\u2026\u201d including US\/Russian tensions approaching Cold War levels, the Syrian crisis, and North Korean nuclear tests.<\/p>\n
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Obama\u2019s Legacy<\/b>
\nAs President Obama laid a wreath at a Hiroshima peace memorial, he echoed his 2009 call in Prague to \u201cpursue a world without nuclear weapons\u201d.
\nHe can claim some significant achievements in that direction. The Iran Nuclear Deal stops development of nuclear weapons by Iran and lifts some of the damaging sanctions that have hurt the common people of that country. It supports moderate politicians and could improve relations. The modest New START Treaty is commendable, having made some cuts in US and Russian deployed strategic missiles.<\/p>\n
Yet the trade-off Obama made with Congress to get \u201cNew START\u201d is utterly unacceptable. He agreed to \u201cmodernize\u201d the entire US nuclear arsenal: the warheads, submarines, missiles, bombers, production facilities and command and control infrastructure, which is now estimated to cost $1 trillion over the next 30 years. That is not compatible with a commitment to nuclear abolition.<\/p>\n
As his term draws to a close, President Obama could take real steps to nuclear abolition. But he will only do this with strong pressure. We must demand action now and build towards greater pressure on the next government. Essential actions include the following:<\/p>\n
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- Remove the US nuclear arsenal from high-alert status, thereby leading all nuclear-armed nations to do the same;<\/li>\n
- Initiate negotiations for global nuclear disarmament as required by Article VI of the nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT);<\/li>\n
- Announce further nuclear reductions with Russia;<\/li>\n
- Join China and India to change US policy to \u2018no first use\u2019 of nuclear weapons, and urge NATO, Russia, and all other nuclear powers to do the same;<\/li>\n
- Cancel the $1 trillion, 30-year plan to overhaul the US nuclear weapons complex and redirect the resources to the needs of our communities.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
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Building the Movement<\/b>
\nBuilding a movement to demand these actions requires connecting the urgent issues of our time. Vincent Intondi does that in his book \u201cAfrican Americans Against the Bomb\u201d. He asks, \u201cWill we ever get to a place where millennials rise up like previous generations and make the connection between racism, poverty, and nuclear disarmament?\u201d Hiroshima survivor Setsuko Thurlow says we must \u201cStop pretending\u2026 We can\u2019t just leave it to the politician, military experts … They think by having more wicked stuff and by threatening the people, they can maintain security. But, to me, it\u2019s just sheer illusion\u2026\u201d<\/p>\nThrough Hiroshima\/Nagasaki commemorations we draw attention to paths to nuclear abolition, join fights against racism and poverty, and gather our energy as a movement. This not the time to leave it to others. It is three minutes to midnight!<\/p>\n
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Distorted History Syracuse Peace Council urges everyone to use the Hiroshima\/Nagasaki Commemoration to strengthen the anti-nuclear, anti-imperialist movement. President Obama\u2019s historic trip to Hiroshima reminds the world of the ongoing urgency of dealing with nuclear weapons. His ambiguous legacy makes it clear that rhetoric and symbolism will not achieve nuclear…<\/p>\n