Nuclear Abolition

Evolution from Violence to Law to Social Justice

The emerging individual is less deferential to the past and more insistent on his or her rights; less willing to conform to regimentation, more insistent on freedom and more tolerant of diversity...Read more

Universal Nuclear Disarmament

As it did several centuries ago, India needs to help the world rediscover the meaning of zero, this time in the nuclear realm. It must advocate universal nuclear disarmament as a state of zero nuclear weapons ... Read more

The Turn Towards Unity: Converting Crises into Opportunities

Today humanity has acquired the conscious self-awareness and the organizational capacity for self-expression and coordinated action. Organizing the consciousness of the global power of citizenry ... Read more

Mediation of Conflicts by Civil Society

Working for peace is part of the heritage WAAS fellows have been given by Academy founders who, after helping develop the theories and technology for nuclear weapons, were amongst the first to recognize that they ... Read more

Simulated ICJ Judgment : Revisiting the Lawfulness of the Threat or Use of Nuclear Weapons

The very possession of nuclear weapons violates the fundamental human rights of the citizens of the world and must be regarded as illegal.... Read more

Flaws in the Concept of Nuclear Deterrance

The economics of growth must be replaced by equilibrium economics, where considerations of ecology, carrying capacity, and sustainability are given proper weight, and where the quality of life of future generations has as much importance as present profits... Read more

Sovereignty and Nuclear Weapons: The Need for Real Sovereign Authority Rooted in the People’s Global Expectations about Survival, Peace and Security

The paper argues for a wider, inclusive concept of sovereignty that accords full recognition ... Read more

Myth, Hiroshima and Fear: How we Overestimated the Usefulness of the Bomb

We rely on nuclear deterrence out of habit and because doctrines and ideas developed during the Cold War got locked in place by fear. But now we have emerged from the Cold War ... Read more

How Reliance on Nuclear Weapons Erodes and Distorts International Law and Global Order

One rule of non-possession for all will be far more conducive than our present world of nuclear haves and have-nots to the development of ... Read more

Re-examining the 1996 ICJ Advisory Opinion: Concerning the Legality of Nuclear Weapons

There can be no reasonable situation where threat of use of nuclear weapons would be justified for self-defence. But such a threat exists in the very possession of nuclear weapons themselves ... Read more

India’s Disarmament Initiative 1988: Continuing Relevance, Valid Pointers for an NWFW

Cooperative security, in place of the current competitive security, is needed to meet not only the requirement of nuclear disarmament but also the many ...Read more

Nuclear Threats and Security

The core of the nuclear weapons problem is the challenge of evolving effective institutions for global governance. The solution to this and other serious challenges can only be resolved by humanity as a whole ...Read more

An Arctic Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone – Needed Now

Governance requires new national and multinational agreements; now is the time to gain acceptance for a future nuclear-weapon-free Arctic ...Read more

The Arms Trade Treaty Opens New Possibilities at the UN

When the will of the majority of the world’s peoples is clearly expressed in an international treaty, even if the treaty functions imperfectly, the question of legality is clear ... Read more

Cooperative Security: A New Paradigm For A World Without Nuclear Weapons?

The concept of security has dramatically evolved. It moved away from the sole protection of states (meaning often regimes or governments) against external threats by military means to ensuring the safety and well-being of individuals ... Read more

Actions to Enhance Global Security*: Focus on WMD and Terrorism

We need a new paradigm for the 21st century which is not dependent on what worked in the 20th century ... Read more

Lessons from World War I

The problem of building a stable, just, and war-free world is difficult, but it is not impossible ... Read more

The 70th Anniversary of the creation of the United Nations: Giving Peace a Chance

Consensus is neither compromise nor unanimity; it aims to go further ... Read more

Can we Finance the Energy Transition?*

We have a financial sector out of control, divorced from the real economy and incapable of providing the liquidity at the scale needed to address key sectors of the real economy ... Read more

Integrated Approach to Peace & Human Security in the 21st Century*

We propose the establishment of an International Center on Human Security (ICHS) committed to an integrated approach that encompasses the political, economic, social, cultural and ecological dimensions of human security .. Read more

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The Forgotten Why Jonathan Granoff Get Full Text in PDF Abstract Contemporary political, social, educational, economic, and religious institutions and philosophical emphasis have an imbalanced emphasis on “how” and an inadequate focus on values, purposes, and goals which one might call “why.” The article provides an analysis of this issue and suggests an approach to remedy its hazardous effects. 1.... Read more	American Hegemony at a Critical Juncture, Lessons from History’s Great Powers Ketan Patel, Christian Hansmeyer, Nandan Desai, Aditya Ajit Get Full Text in PDF Abstract Introduction: At the 2024 election, Americans faced a pivotal choice about their nation's global trajectory, amid intensifying debate over the future of U.S. hegemony. This study investigates whether the United States is experiencing a phase of hegemonic decline, signaling the end of its era as the world's leading great power, or whether its power... Read more
Turbulent Times: A Framework for Navigating Global Crisis Through Conscious Transformation Ketan Patel, Christian Hansmeyer Get Full Text in PDF Abstract We inhabit an era defined by unprecedented uncertainty, distrust, and insecurity. The world faces a multidimensional crisis, a “polycrisis”, encompassing political, economic, technological, social, and environmental components that defy traditional solutions.1 This turbulence stems from the rapid globalization following the Cold War’s end,... Read more	Root Causes and Deep Drivers of Global Turbulence Francis O’Donnell Get Full Text in PDF Abstract “Desperate Hope”, which predates Trump’s return to power, articulates profound concern for the state of global civilisation, emphasizing the fragility of human resilience amidst escalating turbulence. It analyses systemic issues driving global instability and proposes pathways for sustainable progress. Some updated data is included here. The following analysis... Read more
Sources and Solutions for Global Turbulence Garry Jacobs, Ketan Patel Get Full Text in PDF Abstract This paper is intended to provide the conceptual background for discussion during the WAAS@65 conference in July 2025. The central focus of the paper is on the origins, root causes and potential solutions for the rising levels of global turbulence associated with the multidimensional polycrisis confronting humanity today. It explores possible solutions and raises... Read more	Multiplicity: Threats, Partnerships & Success Stories Jonathan Granoff Multiplicity: Threats, Partnerships, and Stories of Success* Get Full Text in PDF Abstract The article discusses the crucial concept of human security in the context of global challenges and multilateral efforts. It highlights the interconnectedness of sustainable development, security, and human rights, emphasizing the imperative for collaborative international actions. The evolution of human... Read more
Time for a Peace Offensive Donato Kiniger-Passigli Time for a Peace Offensive* Get Full Text in PDF “It requires both neither gains nor loses.” – Bertrand Russell Foreword This article describes a proposal for a new WAAS initiative presented by the author at the WAAS General Assembly on June 27, 2024. It is intended to generate positive, practical momentum for the Academy’s HS4A global campaign on Human Security for All. In these precarious,... Read more	Stop All Wars Now! Ivo Šlaus, Aleksander Zidanšek Stop All Wars Now! Get Full Text in PDF As the interconnected wars in Africa, the Middle East and Ukraine are threatening the lives of millions and could even lead to the use of weapons of mass destruction, thus endangering the survival of human civilization, there is an urgent need for action. None of us can stop these wars alone, however, all of us together as citizens of Earth have the power... Read more
Against the Institution of War John Scales Avery Get Full Text in PDF Abstract Among the topics discussed is the current crisis of civilization, to which the institution of war in an era of all-destroying thermonuclear weapons strongly contributes. Another issue that is discussed is the human emotional tendency that might be called “tribalism”. It is our tendency to be kind and altruistic towards members of our own group, and extremely hostile... Read more	The Promise of Peace and Nuclear Abolition: Has large power aggression destroyed Common Security? Alyn Ware Get Full Text in PDF Abstract The UN Secretary-General is currently preparing a New Agenda for Peace, which is expected to broaden the traditional framework of security as it relates to relations between nations, to also include the notion of Human Security which focuses on well-being of individuals and communities. This Human Security framework integrates traditional peace and security... Read more
The UN as a Guardian of World Peace and its Role in the Ukraine Crisis Elena Andreevska Get Full Text in PDF Abstract Following the Second World War, the international community was reinvigorated to design an international body with the capability to limit the onset of another world war. Enshrined in the United Nations (UN) Charter was the vision for the organization to be “a guardian of international peace and security, as a promoter of human rights, as a protector of international... Read more	Evolving Meanings of the War for Ukraine: Winning, Losing, Fearing, Needing David Harries Get Full Text in PDF Abstract The accelerating pace of change and even the near-term unpredictability of its consequences calls for more enlightened and timely analyses of the most globally disruptive events. The continuing war for Ukraine is indisputably such an event. This essay presents an academically unconventional assessment of what that war means, addressing its consequences in terms of... Read more
The War in Ukraine Must Stop Now John Scales Avery Get Full Text in PDF Abstract The extreme dangers of nuclear war are discussed against the background of Russia’s brutal and illegal invasion of Ukraine, during which Vladimir Putin put Russia’s nuclear weapons on high alert. It is recommended that the United States and its allies should stop sending arms to Ukraine, that they should halt the eastward expansion of NATO, and that they should... Read more	An Assessment of the Efficacy of Economic Sanctions in Response to Russian Military Aggression in Ukraine Walton Stinson Get Full Text in PDF Abstract Economic Sanctions are being deployed by the West in the Russia-Ukraine conflict at a level never before attempted with the intention of wrecking the Russian economy. Very little attention is given to the dismal record of sanctions or the consequences of sanctions on civilians, mercantile enterprises, global and regional economies, and the economies of countries... Read more
The World Will Never be the Same: The Russia-Ukraine Conflict as a Trigger Point for Deglobalisation Patrick Liedtke Get Full Text in PDF Abstract This paper makes the case for why we believe that the Russia-Ukraine crisis signals the end of a global era defined by globalisation. Even though Russia’s economy is only a fraction of the US, EU or China, its role in the world is much more relevant and the events in Ukraine are triggering a cascade of effects that will redefine the political, social and economic... Read more	The Cold War Harlan Cleveland Get Full Text in PDF Note This article is a reproduction of the keynote address by Harlan Cleveland at the William G. McGowan Theatre on October 21, 2006 in the National Archives and Record Administration at https://www.archives.gov/research/foreign-policy/cold-war/symposium/cleveland.html I am not a historian, so don’t look for dispassionate recording of the Cold War in what follows. I was of... Read more
Missed Opportunities: Ukraine is an UN-finished Story of Global Proportions Garry Jacobs Get Full Text in PDF Abstract This paper seeks to look beyond the sense of justifiable outrage and horror over the events still unfolding as a result of the war in Ukraine to examine the root causes of the current conflict and the essential issues that need to be addressed in order to end and prevent its recurrence. It challenges simplistic assumptions underlying the sense of pessimism,... Read more	On the Necessary Unity of National, Regional and Global Approaches to Science & Technology Nebojša Nešković Get Full Text in PDF In 1954, the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), Geneva, Switzerland, was founded. Today, it is the largest laboratory for particle physics in the world. A similar institution, the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR), was founded in 1956 in Dubna, USSR. Currently, it is one of the largest research centers in the world devoted to particle physics,... Read more
Quest for Peace & Social Mechanisms for Safeguarding it Ashok Natarajan Get Full Text in PDF Abstract The world has yet to evolve a coherent theory of peace. As health is commonly understood as the absence of disease, peace is broadly conceived as the absence of war. This is a negative ideal that merely eschews physical violence rather than replacing the urge for aggression with a positive and self-existent sense of security. It addresses the visible symptoms but... Read more	The Russell-Einstein Manifesto: As relevant today as it was 65 years ago “We appeal as human beings to human beings:Remember your humanity, and forget the rest.” These are the moving words with which Albert Einstein, Bertrand Russell and nine other distinguished scientists and intellectuals introduced the famous resolution which became known as the Russell-Einstein Manifesto on July 9, 1955. Exactly 65 years later, their message is as relevant today as it was when it... Read more
The Political Economy of Neoliberalism and Illiberal Democracy Garry Jacobs Get Full Text in PDF Abstract The unprecedented opportunities missed at the end of the Cold War have come back to haunt and taunt us in the form of misshapen ideologies and misconceived policies. Discredited notions discarded by history once again raise their heads to be finally buried or bury us. Despite the rhetoric of the Washington Consensus, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the collapse... Read more	Integrated Approach to Peace & Human Security in the 21st Century* Garry Jacobs Get Full Text in PDF Abstract Humanity has made remarkable progress during the past two centuries in advancing peace, democracy, human rights, economic development and social equality. The evolution of human relations has progressed far from the time when physical violence, war and conquest were the predominant form of international relations. Diplomacy has evolved from political... Read more
Can we Finance the Energy Transition?* Ian Johnson Get Full Text in PDF Abstract The energy sector is pivotal to our aspirations for a sustainable planet and yet two major challenges face policymakers worldwide. The first is to decide what set of technical choices provide the best solution to meet social, economic and environmental agendas; and the second is to decide how these choices can be financed. The bulk of new energy demand will... Read more	The 70th Anniversary of the creation of the United Nations: Giving Peace a Chance Christian Guillermet-Fernández, David Fernández Puyana Get Full Text in PDF Abstract War and peace perpetually alternate. Peace is always seen as an endless project, even a dream, to be realised in brotherhood by everyone all over the earth. During the last centuries, outstanding endeavours have been undertaken by the international community to create an international order free from wars through the strengthening of mechanisms aimed at... Read more
Lessons from World War I John Scales Avery Get Full Text in PDF Abstract The history of World War I is reviewed, starting with a discussion of the development of nationalist movements in Europe. It is pointed out that the global disaster started with a seemingly small operation by Austria, which escalated uncontrollably into an all-destroying conflagration. A striking feature of the war was that none of the people who started it had... Read more	Actions to Enhance Global Security*: Focus on WMD and Terrorism Desmond Browne, Garry Jacobs, Ivo Šlaus “We need a new paradigm for the 21st century which is not dependent on what worked in the 20th century.” Get Full Text in PDF Politicians are distracted with the on-going economic crisis and instability. While understandable this is far from the only challenge facing the world. If we are to seize the opportunities of the future then we have to address the legacy of the past and... Read more
Cooperative Security: A New Paradigm For A World Without Nuclear Weapons? Marc Finaud Get Full Text in PDF Editorial Note: This paper was presented at the international conference “Opportunities and Challenges for the 21st Century – Need for a New Paradigm”, which was organised by the United Nations Office and the World Academy of Art and Science and held at the United Nations Office in Geneva on June 3, 2013. Abstract If there is a loose consensus on aiming at a world free... Read more	The Arms Trade Treaty Opens New Possibilities at the UN John Scales Avery Get Full Text in PDF Abstract On 2 April, 2013, the Arms Trade Treaty, which had been blocked for ten years in the consensus-bound Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, was put directly before the United Nations General Assembly, and was passed by a massive majority. This historic victory opens new possibilities for progress on other seemingly intractable issues. In particular, it gives... Read more
The ATOM Project Savas Hadjikyriacou The ATOM Project is a new international initiative to build global support for a permanent end to nuclear weapons testing and the total abolition of nuclear weapons. It was launched at a parliamentary assembly in Astana, Kazakhstan on August 29, 2012, the UN International Day Against Nuclear Tests, established in recognition of the closing of the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site on that day in... Read more	Stop the Insanity — Report on Astana Conference Editorial Note None who has witnessed the human suffering inflicted by nuclear radiation at the Semipalatinsk Nuclear Test Site in Kazakhstan can justify the continued existence of nuclear weapons for a single moment longer than is needed to destroy all of them. Statistics do not tell the story, but if ever a statistic makes a compelling narrative, then the 1.5 million Kazakhstanis who have... Read more
An Arctic Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone – Needed Now Adele Buckley Get Full Text in PDF Climate change and nuclear weapons, the two great security threats of the 21st century, are uniquely influential in the Arctic. Although the current risk of conflict is low, the global future is potentially turbulent. There is a ‘new’ Arctic because of meltdown induced by climate change. Some see great economic opportunities; others see ecological and human security threats... Read more	Nuclear Threats and Security Garry Jacobs, Winston P. Nagan Get Full Text in PDF Abstract This article presents highlights and insights from the International Conference on “Nuclear Threats and Security” organized by the World Academy of Art and Science in association with the European Leadership Network and the Dag Hammarskjöld University College of International Relations and Diplomacy and sponsored by NATO at the Inter-University Centre, Dubrovnik on... Read more
India’s Disarmament Initiative 1988: Continuing Relevance, Valid Pointers for an NWFW Manpreet Sethi Get Full Text in PDF Abstract The run up to the NPT Review Conference in 2010 brought nuclear disarmament into focus. Transitory though this trend turned out to be, it nevertheless became a trigger for India to re-examine its own position on disarmament. In order to take a considered view on the subject, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh instituted an Informal Group in October 2010 with the... Read more	Re-examining the 1996 ICJ Advisory Opinion: Concerning the Legality of Nuclear Weapons Jasjit Singh Get Full Text in PDF Abstract The primary objections raised against total elimination of nuclear weapons are built around a few arguments mostly of non-technical nature. Nuclear weapons and the strategies for their use have resulted in the establishment of a vicious circle within which the international community is trapped. The argument that the world will be unsafe without nuclear weapons is... Read more
How Reliance on Nuclear Weapons Erodes and Distorts International Law and Global Order John Burroughs Get Full Text in PDF Abstract Deployment of nuclear forces as an international security mechanism for prevention of major war is far removed from the world envisaged by the United Nations Charter in which threat or use of force is the exception, not the rule. Reliance on nuclear weapons has also distorted the development of major instruments of international humanitarian law and international... Read more	Myth, Hiroshima and Fear: How we Overestimated the Usefulness of the Bomb Ward Wilson Get Full Text in PDF Abstract Recent evidence from World War II and the Cold War shows that nuclear weapons are far less useful as military and political tools than has been believed. Far from giving a madman the power to conquer the world, nuclear weapons are clumsy, dangerous technology with very few real uses — even if you have a monopoly. No one does his best thinking when gripped by fear.... Read more
World Peace Through Law: Rethinking an Old Theory James Ranney Get Full Text in PDF Abstract The author sets about re-thinking the old concept of “World Peace Through Law” (WPTL), meaning replacing the use of international force with the global rule of law. He traces the history of the WPTL concept back to the British legal philosopher Jeremy Bentham, whose 1789 ‘Plan for an Universal and Perpetual Peace’ proposed “a plan of general and permanent... Read more	Sovereignty and Nuclear Weapons: The Need for Real Sovereign Authority Rooted in the People’s Global Expectations about Survival, Peace and Security Winston P. Nagan, Garry Jacobs Get Full Text in PDF Abstract The current international security framework is based on an incomplete, anachronistic conception of sovereignty shaped largely by historical circumstance rather than principles of universal justice. Evolution of the global community over the past half century necessitates a reformulation of the concept to justly represent the rights of individual citizens and the... Read more
Flaws in the Concept of Nuclear Deterrance John Scales Avery Get the Full Text in PDF Abstract The concept of nuclear deterrence is seriously flawed, and it violates the fundamental ethical principles of all major religions. Besides being morally unacceptable, nuclear weapons are also illegal according to a historic 1996 decision of the International Court of Justice, a ruling that reflects the opinion of the vast majority of the worldʼs peoples. Even a... Read more	Simulated ICJ Judgment : Revisiting the Lawfulness of the Threat or Use of Nuclear Weapons Winston P. Nagan Get Full Text in PDF Abstract The author prepared this simulated judgment at the request of Cadmus editors to demonstrate that there is ample ground for revisiting and revising the landmark 1996 advisory opinion of the ICJ on the legality of nuclear weapons. The ICJ failed to anticipate the proliferation of nuclear weapons, which expands the evolution of the concept of sovereignty, the potential... Read more
Evolution from Violence to Law to Social Justice Winston P. Nagan, Garry Jacobs Social development is largely a subconscious process. It expresses irresistible human aspirations and social tendencies but works itself out through a long process of trial and error, advance and retreat, conflict and resolution. Law is a complex phenomenon. The principles and practice of law are a composite of multiple forces – the force of past precedent, established... Read more	Mediation of Conflicts by Civil Society Melanie Greenberg, Robert J. Berg, Cora Lacatus Get Full Text in PDF The number and severity of conflicts (violent clashes where there are more than 1000 casualties) have declined markedly since the end of the Cold War. This is shown graphically below despite this being a time of high population growth:1 Figure1: Number of reported, codable deaths from state-based armed conflict, 1946-2005 Even including a rise in the number of terrorist... Read more
The Turn Towards Unity: Converting Crises into Opportunities Garry Jacobs Get Full Text in PDF Abstract Human progress is stimulated by external threats and pressures. Values distilled from long experience possess the essential knowledge and power needed for continuous development and evolution. Successive waves of foreign invasions following the collapse of the Roman Empire coalesced the tribes of England into a nation state. Centuries of incessant warfare finally... Read more	Universal Nuclear Disarmament Manpreet Sethi Get Full Text in PDF 1. Introduction Universal nuclear disarmament** is not a new concept. From the time that the weapon was first used in 1945, and once the horrendous destruction that it could cause was understood, countries have struggled with the challenge of how to put the genie back into the bottle. To little avail. Nuclear abolition has proved to be an elusive objective owing to the lack... Read more
Abolition of Nuclear Weapons Get Full Text in PDF Nuclear weapons present a problem of immense complexity involving a multiplicity of actors, both nuclear and non-nuclear weapon states as well as non-state actors, with differing perceptions and security threats and compounded by the growing importance of nuclear energy and technological advances in conventional weaponry and cruise missiles. Yet a few things are... Read more