CONVERSATIONS THAT MATTER
Are we once again on the cusp of nuclear catastrophe? It’s a concern that hung over the world for half a century during the Cold War. At the peak in 1980, there were more than 61,000 nuclear weapons in the world.
Then-U.S. president Ronald Reagan and then-Soviet general secretary Mikhail Gorbachev recognized the threat posed by two powerful nations on hair trigger alert. Between them they had enough stored energy to destroy the world. In October 1986, in Reykjavik, Iceland, they began talks that have led to a series of arms reduction agreements.
The most recent, the New START agreement, will expire in February of 2021. Despite the reduction in nuclear arms, the explosive potential in the hands of eight nations that control just shy of 15,000 nukes remains deadly.
Bruce Blair, of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, says, “There are two elements that make the current situation so dangerous: One, almost no one is paying attention and, two, Russia and the U.S.A. maintain a rapid response protocol.”
During the Cold War, the launch protocol was never fully activated. Over the past 10 years, however, Blair says, “on multiple occasions, there have been ambiguous ballistic threats that rose to the level of presidential participation and under presidents Bush and Obama, the launch protocol was activated.” In each case, cooler heads prevailed and what was believed to be imminent danger turned out to be a false alarm.
We invited Blair to join us for a Conversation That Matters about the rising risk that nuclear weapons and response protocols pose. To see the video, go to vancouversun.com/tag/conversations-that-matter
Simon Fraser University’s Centre for Dialogue presents Conversations That Matter. Join veteran Broadcaster Stuart McNish each week for an important and engaging Conversation about the issues shaping our future.
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