Fulfil the NPT: From nuclear threats to human security, an Open Letter to the States Parties of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

Posted: 3rd January 2022

On behalf of NoFirstUse Global we thank you most sincerely for endorsing Fulfil the NPT: From nuclear threats to human security, an Open Letter to the States Parties of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

The increasing tensions between nuclear-armed states, combined with policies and preparations to initiate a nuclear war (first-use policies), make this Open Letter of utmost importance. It is imperative that the leaders of nuclear armed states heed the calls in the letter to reduce nuclear risks and end the arms race. See Dear nuclear powers: Don’t even THINK about starting a nuclear war!
 

Who has endorsed?

So far, over 600 political, military and religious leaders, as well as legislators, academics, scientists, business leaders, youth, lawyers, Nobel laureates, Right Livelihood Laureates (the ‘Alternative Nobel Peace Prize’) and other representatives of civil society have endorsed.

The Letter remains open for endorsement until we present it to the 10th Review Conference of States Parties to the NPT in the opening week of the conference (probably the 2nd week of January). We encourage you to invite your colleagues to endorse if they have not already done so. Below is a sample invitation message.
 
Presentation to the NPT Review Conference & Side Event

We were originally scheduled to present the Open Letter to a plenary session of the NPT Review Conference on January 6, 2022. However, this date will be changed due to the deteriorating COVID-19 situation in New York. The President of the NPT Review Conference will announce soon whether the Conference will commence one week later (from January 10) as a virtual conference, or whether it will be postponed to a later date.
 
In either case, we will hold a virtual side-event on January 7 where experts will discuss in more detail the key calls in the Open Letter, in particular the call for nuclear armed states to adopt no-first-use policies. We encourage you to register for this event
 Register for the Jan 7 event: From nuclear threats to human securityMore on the NPT Review Conference and the Open Letter

Once again we thank you for endorsing the Open Letter, and for any further effort you might make to promote the Open Letter more widely. We will be in touch again soon regarding the date of its presentation to the NPT Review Conference, which you will be able to watch on UNTV.

Yours sincerely,

NoFirstUse Global Steering Committee:

Marc Finaud, France/Switzerland
Initiatives pour le Désarmement Nucléaire (IDN)
Abolition 2000 working group on Nuclear Risk Reduction

John Hallam, Australia
People for Nuclear Disarmament

Marzhan Nurzhan, Kazakhstan/Switzerland
Basel Peace Office

Vanda Proskova, Czech Republic
PragueVision Institute for Sustainable Security

Aaron Tovish, Mexico/Philippines
Zona Libre
Abolition 2000 working group on Nuclear Risk Reduction

Carlo Trezza, Italy
Former Ambassador of Italy to the Conference on Disarmament

Rob van Riet, Netherlands/UK
World Future Council

Alyn Ware, New Zealand/Czech Republic
World Future Council
Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament

Yosuke Watanabe, Japan
Peace Depot

Uta Zapf, Germany
Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament 
Former Chair of the German Parliament Subcommittee on Disarmament, Arms Control and Non-proliferation.

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NoFirstUse Global
C/o PragueVision Institute for Sustainable Security
Ostrovského 253/3, Suite 4061
150 00, Prague 5, Czech Republic
www.nofirstuse.global
[email protected]

Sample invitation letter/message to your colleagues inviting them to endorse the Open Letter to States Parties to the NPT Review Conference

Dear (colleague), 

I encourage you to join me in endorsing Fulfil the NPT: From nuclear threats to human security, an Open Letter to the States Parties to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) which will be presented to the 10th NPT Review Conference in the new year. Hot conflicts between nuclear-armed states, combined with policies and preparations to initiate a nuclear war (first-use policies), make the situation today very frightening. It is imperative that the leaders of nuclear armed states heed the calls in the Letter to reduce nuclear risks and end the arms race. See Dear nuclear powers: Don’t even THINK about starting a nuclear war!

The NPT Review Conferences provide an opportunity to address governments directly. 191 governments are Parties to the Treaty, including five of the nuclear armed States. Over 600 political, military and religious leaders, as well as legislators, academics, scientists, business leaders, youth, lawyers, representatives of civil society organizations and others have already endorsed the Open Letter. Listed below are just a few of these. Your endorsement could help make the letter even more powerful.  

Some endorsers of the Open Letter:

• Ambassador Libran Cabactulan (Philippines). Former Ambassador of the Philippines to the UN. President of the 2010 NPT Review Conference;
• General (ret) Bernard Norlain (France). Président, IDN-Initiatives pour le Désarmement Nucléaire. Former Air Defense Commander of the French Air Force;
• Terumi Tanaka (Japan). Hibakusha – Nagasaki bomb survivor. Secretary-General, Hidankyo Organisation of Atomic and Hydrogen Bomb Sufferers;
• Dr Hedy Fry MP (Canada). OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Special Representative on Gender;
• Ambassador Thomas Graham  (USA), Head of the United States Delegation to the 1995 NPT Review and Extension Conference;
• Hon Gareth Evans (Australia). Former Foreign Minister of Australia; Founding Convenor, Asia-Pacific Leadership Network for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament;
• Daniel Ellsberg (USA). Whistleblower – The Pentagon Papers. Author, The Doomsday Machine. Right Livelihood Laureate;
• Baroness Sue Miller (UK). Vice-Chair, All Party Parliamentary Group on Global Security and Non-proliferation;
• Commander Robert Forsyth (UK), Retired Royal Navy Nuclear Submarine Commander;
• Ambassador Carlo Trezza (Italy), Former Italian Ambassador to the UN Conference on Disarmament in Geneva;
• Professor Kenji Urata (Japan), Professor Emeritus of Law, Waseda University. Board Member, International Association of Lawyers Against Nuclear Arms (IALANA);
• Jan Hoekema (Netherlands). President, Pugwash Netherlands, Former Mayor and member of Mayors for Peace;
• Leah Bolger (USA). President, World BEYOND War;
• Anke Kuiper (Netherlands), Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom;
• Mairead Corrigan Maguire (Ireland), Founder of Peace People. Nobel Peace Laureate;
• Kevin Martin (USA). President, Peace Action;
• Dr. Vladimir Kozin (Russian Federation), Member, Russian Academy of Military Sciences;
• Hiromichi Umebayashi (Japan). Special Advisor, Peace Depot;
• Uta Zapf (Germany), Former Chair of the German Parliament Subcommittee on Disarmament, Arms Control and Non-Proliferation;
• Mounir Zahran, (Egypt), Chairman, Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs. Former Egyptian Ambassador to the UN in Geneva;
• Dave Webb (UK), Chair, Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament;
• Rev William Swing (USA), Founder, United Religions Initiative: Voices for a World Free of Nuclear Weapons;
• Admiral Laxminarayan Ramdas (India). Former Chief of Staff of the Indian Navy;
• Dr. Abdul Hameed Nayyar (Pakistan), Physicist. Former Member of the UN Secretary General’s Advisory Board on Disarmament;
• Carol Gilbert (United States), International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN);
• Prof. Andreas Nidecker  (Switzerland), IPPNW Switzerland. President, Basel Peace Office;
  and many more….

For the text of the Open Letter and to endorse, please see From nuclear threats to human security: Open Letter to the States Parties of the NPT.

My very best wishes