Obama and Medvedev Sign Arms Treaty
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President
Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed the new Strategic
Arms Reduction Treaty (START) on April 8, described by the British Times as “the first concrete foreign policy achievement by Mr. Obama since he took office.”
“Today is an important milestone for nuclear security and
non-proliferation, and for U.S.-Russia relations,” said Obama, speaking
inside Prague Castle, the official residence of the Czech President, in
the capital of the Czech Republic.
“We are going to start seeing some ramped up negotiations. We are going to be able to secure strong, tough sanctions on Iran this spring,” added Obama.
Medvedev, while standing at a lectern next to Obama, commented about the treaty: “The result we have obtained is good.”
The Times cited Obama’s belief that that the U.S.-Russia pact helped to increase pressure on Iran by strengthening ties between Moscow and Washington and demonstrating to the world that the two powers were serious about keeping to their commitments to disarm under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Obama will continue to press for a tougher stance against Iran at a two-day summit comprised of 47 national leaders that he will host in Washington next week.
The White House website posted a release entitled “Remarks by President Obama and President Medvedev of Russia at New START Treaty Signing Ceremony and Press Conference.”
During the event, President Obama stated:
This may not seem a matter of grave consequence so long as we are speaking of some “rogue” Middle Easter regime. But consider the precedent set by this line of thinking: Nations that are party to the UN and UN-mandated nuclear non-proliferation treaties are subject to UN sanctions and therefore subservient to the UN.
As to how this impacts the United Sates, we must look to a long series of actions taken by U.S. presidents to surrender U.S. nuclear weapons to a UN authority. The first notable example of this occurred on on September 25, 1961, when President John F. Kennedy presented to the 16th General Assembly of the United Nations a disarmament proposal entitled, Freedom from War: The United States Program for General and Complete Disarmament in a Peaceful World (State Department Publication 7277).
The "disarmament" called for by the document had much more to do with creating a monopoly of force for the UN than with weapons elimination. Excerpts from the document include:
• "Disarmament shall take place as rapidly as possible until it is completed in [a program of three] stages containing balanced, phased and safeguarded measures, with each measure and stage to be carried out in an agreed period of time."
• "As states relinquish their arms, the United Nations shall be progressively strengthened in order to improve its capacity to assure international security and the peaceful settlement of differences as well as to facilitate the development of international cooperation in common tasks for the benefit of mankind."
• "By the time Stage II [of the three-stage disarmament program] has been completed, the confidence produced through a verified disarmament program, the acceptance of rules of peaceful international behavior, and the development of strengthened international peace-keeping processes within the framework of the U.N. should have reached a point where the states of the world can move forward to Stage III. In Stage III progressive controlled disarmament and continuously developing principles and procedures of international law would proceed to a point where no state would have the military power to challenge the progressively strengthened U.N. Peace Force and all international disputes would be settled according to the agreed principles of international conduct." (Emphasis added.)
“We are going to start seeing some ramped up negotiations. We are going to be able to secure strong, tough sanctions on Iran this spring,” added Obama.
Medvedev, while standing at a lectern next to Obama, commented about the treaty: “The result we have obtained is good.”
The Times cited Obama’s belief that that the U.S.-Russia pact helped to increase pressure on Iran by strengthening ties between Moscow and Washington and demonstrating to the world that the two powers were serious about keeping to their commitments to disarm under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Obama will continue to press for a tougher stance against Iran at a two-day summit comprised of 47 national leaders that he will host in Washington next week.
The White House website posted a release entitled “Remarks by President Obama and President Medvedev of Russia at New START Treaty Signing Ceremony and Press Conference.”
During the event, President Obama stated:
One year ago this week, I came here to
Prague and gave a speech outlining America’s comprehensive commitment to
stopping the spread of nuclear weapons and seeking the ultimate goal of
a world without them.... I believed then — as I do now — that the
pursuit of that goal will move us further beyond the Cold War,
strengthen the global non-proliferation regime, and make the United
States, and the world, safer and more secure. One of the steps that I
called for last year was the realization of this treaty, so it’s very
gratifying to be back in Prague today....
Today is an important milestone for
nuclear security and non-proliferation, and for U.S.-Russia relations.
It fulfills our common objective to negotiate a new Strategic Arms
Reduction Treaty. It includes significant reductions in the nuclear
weapons that we will deploy. It cuts our delivery vehicles by roughly
half. It includes a comprehensive verification regime, which allows us
to further build trust. It enables both sides the flexibility to protect
our security, as well as America’s unwavering commitment to the
security of our European allies. And I look forward to working with the
United States Senate to achieve ratification for this important treaty
later this year.
The president continued:
While the New START treaty is an important
first step forward, it is just one step on a longer journey. As I said
last year in Prague, this treaty will set the stage for further cuts.
And going forward, we hope to pursue discussions with Russia on reducing
both our strategic and tactical weapons, including non-deployed
weapons.
As we continue through Obama’s statements we also find his advocacy
of an international nuclear weapons enforcement apparatus through the
UN:
Earlier this week, the United States
formally changed our policy to make it clear that those [non]-nuclear
weapons states that are in compliance with the Nuclear Non-Proliferation
Treaty and their non-proliferation obligations will not be threatened
by America’s nuclear arsenal. This demonstrates, once more, America’s
commitment to the NPT as a cornerstone of our security strategy. Those
nations that follow the rules will find greater security and
opportunity. Those nations that refuse to meet their obligations will be
isolated, and denied the opportunity that comes with international
recognition.
That includes accountability for those that break the rules
— otherwise the NPT is just words on a page. That’s why the United
States and Russia are part of a coalition of nations insisting that the
Islamic Republic of Iran face consequences, because they have
continually failed to meet their obligations. We are working together at
the United Nations Security Council to pass strong sanctions on
Iran. And we will not tolerate actions that flout the NPT, risk an arms
race in a vital region, and threaten the credibility of the
international community and our collective security.
[Emphasis added.]
Notice Obama’s insistence that supposedly sovereign nation states are
bound by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) enforceable by
sanctions imposed by the United Nations Security Council.This may not seem a matter of grave consequence so long as we are speaking of some “rogue” Middle Easter regime. But consider the precedent set by this line of thinking: Nations that are party to the UN and UN-mandated nuclear non-proliferation treaties are subject to UN sanctions and therefore subservient to the UN.
As to how this impacts the United Sates, we must look to a long series of actions taken by U.S. presidents to surrender U.S. nuclear weapons to a UN authority. The first notable example of this occurred on on September 25, 1961, when President John F. Kennedy presented to the 16th General Assembly of the United Nations a disarmament proposal entitled, Freedom from War: The United States Program for General and Complete Disarmament in a Peaceful World (State Department Publication 7277).
The "disarmament" called for by the document had much more to do with creating a monopoly of force for the UN than with weapons elimination. Excerpts from the document include:
• "Disarmament shall take place as rapidly as possible until it is completed in [a program of three] stages containing balanced, phased and safeguarded measures, with each measure and stage to be carried out in an agreed period of time."
• "As states relinquish their arms, the United Nations shall be progressively strengthened in order to improve its capacity to assure international security and the peaceful settlement of differences as well as to facilitate the development of international cooperation in common tasks for the benefit of mankind."
• "By the time Stage II [of the three-stage disarmament program] has been completed, the confidence produced through a verified disarmament program, the acceptance of rules of peaceful international behavior, and the development of strengthened international peace-keeping processes within the framework of the U.N. should have reached a point where the states of the world can move forward to Stage III. In Stage III progressive controlled disarmament and continuously developing principles and procedures of international law would proceed to a point where no state would have the military power to challenge the progressively strengthened U.N. Peace Force and all international disputes would be settled according to the agreed principles of international conduct." (Emphasis added.)
Photo: President Barack Obama signs the New START treaty, April 8, 2010, in Prague: AP Images
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