A new generation of nuclear detonation sensors should convince Senate Republicans to endorse the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, former U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz said Friday (see GSN, March 30).
(Apr. 20) -
Former U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz, shown last year, on Friday encouraged Republican lawmakers to support a worldwide ban on nuclear-weapon test detonations (Sara Johannessen/Getty Images).
Republicans voted almost uniformly to block the pact in 1999, citing concerns that a small-scale underground test detonation might not be detected by a worldwide network of seismic sensors and other monitoring equipment, the Associated Press reported. The treaty received 48 supporting votes at that time, falling far short of the two-thirds majority it needed to win approval.
The treaty's opponents "don't have to say they changed their mind. They can say there's new evidence that we have, and on the basis of new evidence" they could support the pact, said Shultz, top U.S. diplomat during the Reagan administration. Republicans "might have been right voting against it some years ago, but they would be right voting for it now, based on these new facts," he said.
More effective detection technologies have been deployed over the last 10 years, he said, noting that the system detected North Korea's small 2006 nuclear test detonation.
In addition, the United States has established a new system since 1999 to certify the reliability and security of its nuclear weapons, according to Shultz, who has joined other U.S. statesmen in advocating eventual global nuclear disarmament (see GSN, April 17). That negates the need for test blasts that would be prohibited by the treaty, he said.
"These are new pieces of information that are very important and that should be made available to the Senate," Shultz added.
The United States is among 44 nations that must ratify the treaty before it can enter into force. Nine nations have yet to sign on -- China, Colombia, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, North Korea and the United States (Charles Hanley, Associated Press/Google News, April 17).