Towards nuclear zero

Rarely in the atomic age have hopes been raised as high as they are now for genuine progress toward disarmament. The new receptivity reflected in the policy declarations of many governments was sparked by a wave of private initiatives led by former senior policy leaders in many countries.

This book examines practical steps for achieving progress toward disarmament, realistically assessing both challenges and opportunities associated with achieving a world without nuclear weapons.

The book places the current debate over nuclear abolition in the context of urgent non-proliferation priorities and the need to prevent nuclear weapons from falling into the hands of extremist regimes and terrorists. It examines the reasons why more than two dozen states have given up nuclear programs over the years and distils lessons from the end of the cold war to offer policy recommendations for moving toward lessened global reliance on nuclear weapons. Also included are in-depth analyses of proliferation challenges and disarmament opportunities in North Korea and Iran. The book concludes with a detailed roadmap for moving progressively toward global nuclear zero. It proposes a new international security regime based on shared missile defences, nonweaponized deterrence and greater efforts to enhance transnational cooperation.

David Cortright is director of Policy Studies at the Kroc Institute at the University of Notre Dame and chair of the Fourth Freedom Forum. He has served as advisor to agencies of the United Nations, international think tanks, and the governments of Canada, Finland, Sweden, and Japan. Author, co-author or editor of 15 books, Cortright has written widely on nuclear disarmament, multilateral counterterrorism, and incentives and sanctions for international peacemaking.

Raimo Väyrynen has served during his over 40-year career as Professor of International Relations and the Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Helsinki, Professor of Political Science and the John M. Regan Director of the Joan B. Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame, President of the Academy of Finland, and Director of the Finnish Institute of International Affairs. Väyrynen has published extensively on the theory and history of international relations, international security and arms control, and international political economy.