April 6, 2018 at 1:53 p.m.
PERSPECTIVE
Atomic bomb anniversary reminds us: Don't stop fighting nuclear weapons
"Leadership in a nuclear world," said the bishops, "means examining with great care and objectivity every potential initiative toward world peace, regardless of how unpromising it might at first appear."
Those words have particular import this year as we look at ways to deal with Iran's nuclear ambitions while witnessing the failure of the 2015 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons to agree even on a joint final statement. (The latter group meets every five years to review the operation of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.)
The Iranian deal has received much more publicity than the treaty review, and has become a focus of disagreement in the run-up to the presidential primaries. Despite much opposition, it is favored by both Pope Francis and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
In a letter to Congress, the bishops noted that, since 2007, their Committee on International Justice and Peace has -- reflecting the long-standing position of the Vatican -- urged our nation to pursue diplomacy to ensure Iran's compliance with its obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Earlier this year, Pope Francis expressed his appreciation for the work that the negotiators were doing.
This came in the wake of a statement from the Vatican that was delivered in December to the Vienna Conference on the Humanitarian Impact of Nuclear Weapons. "The status quo is unsustainable and undesirable," according to the statement.
As if predicting what would happen at the Review Conference, the statement continued: "The institutions that are supposed to find solutions and new instruments are deadlocked. The actual international context, including the relationship between nuclear weapons states themselves, does not lead to optimism."
So, we have a treaty review that does not appear to have been successful, and a treaty with Iran that may or not gain congressional approval. What are we to do?
1. We must not be discouraged. Over the years, we have seen the number of nuclear weapons in the world reduced from a high of approximately 70,000 to a current level of roughly 16,000. That's serious progress, and proof that negotiated settlements do work.
Then there is the success of the Global Threat Reduction Initiative, which removed highly-enriched uranium and plutonium from 18 countries - more than enough for 165 nuclear bombs.
Yet more remains. We cannot assume that the nuclear threat ceased at the end of the Cold War, or that the money spent on nuclear weapons is minor. Our own government is spending $1 trillion over the next decade on modernizing our nuclear arsenal, even while cuts are proposed to programs that serve our most vulnerable citizens.
2. We need to let our government leaders know that the issue of nuclear disarmament is not forgotten and that it remains important to us. As Pope Francis has noted, "Spending on nuclear weapons squanders the wealth of nations." A better use, he said, would be to invest in areas such as "education, health and the fight against extreme poverty."
3. We must not forget the strength of our faith. As Pope Francis wrote to the gathering in Vienna, "The role of churches and religious communities, civil society, academic institutions is vital to not let hope die, to not let cynicism and realpolitik take over."
We need to recall the issuance in 1963 of "Pacem in Terris" by St. Pope John XXIII. In the age of the Cuban missile crisis, the pope sought to place international affairs of state within a moral framework.
His encyclical was hand-delivered to the White House and the Kremlin, and is believed to have helped inspire the moral vision of Kennedy, Khrushchev and other leaders of the day.
Let us work and pray that the words of today's religious leaders may have such an impact.
(Deacon Ayres is the director of the Albany Diocese's Commission on Peace and Justice. He blogs at http://peace-justice.blogspot.com.)[[In-content Ad]]
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