Australian government complicit in nuclear weapons, silent on Nuclear Weapons Ban Treaty
 Nuclear weapons illegal from 22 January https://www.miragenews.com/nuclear-weapons-illegal-from-22-january/ 21 Jan 21, As President Joe Biden takes charge in the United States – and is expected to immediately move to rejoin the Paris climate agreement – this week also sees a very significant shift in the global status of nuclear weapons.On Friday 22 January the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons takes effect, making nuclear weapons finally and formally illegal under international law. “This is a sign of hope for our planet,” said Dave Sweeney, ACF nuclear free campaigner and co-founder of ICAN, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons. “Nuclear weapons pose an existential threat. They are weapons of mass and indiscriminate murder. From this week, they are illegal under international law.” The treaty prohibits signatories from testing, developing, producing, stockpiling or threatening to use nuclear weapons. It also obliges parties to support the widespread adoption of the treaty and address the human and environmental impacts of nuclear testing. While the treaty cannot force non-signatories – including the USA, China and Russia – to disarm, it will increase the political, legal and economic pressure on these nations and their allies. The Morrison government has opposed the progress of the treaty and refuses to support or sign the initiative. Labor has committed to sign and ratify the treaty when it is next in government. The Greens and some cross benchers also support the treaty. “The changed status of nuclear weapons means Australia faces a clear choice,” Dave Sweeney said. “We either choose to be a responsible and lawful member of the global community or we remain silent and complicit in plans to fight illegal wars. “It’s time for Australia to be on the right side of law and history – this treaty is the best way to finally get rid of the world’s worst weapons. We should celebrate it and support it.” The ban follows years of advocacy led by ICAN, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, which started in Melbourne in 2007 and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2017 for drawing attention to the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons and for its efforts to achieve a treaty-based prohibition of such weapons. ICAN briefing paper on the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and Australia /Public Release. The material in this public release comes from the originating organization and may be of a point-in-time nature, edited for clarity, style and length. View in full here. |
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The 70-year nuclear gloom begins to lift on January 22
 Abolishing Nuclear Weapons: A New Chance, https://portside.org/2021-01-19/abolishing-nuclear-weapons-new-chance– 20 Jan 21,
The 70-year nuclear gloom begins to lift on January 22, 2021. The nine countries that have held the world captive to the threat of nuclear war are losing moral ground to 122 smaller countries that approved the world’s first nuclear weapons ban. Anuclear darkness has engulfed the world for seven decades, with only intermittent breakthroughs of light when treaties among nuclear nations were negotiated. Some treaties have been violated for decades; others, walked away from by Trump. Any progress made on eliminating nuclear weapons has ceased. Worse, a new weapons upgrade is in the works by the nuclear nations. In 2009 President Obama spoke of the dream of a world without nuclear weapons, yet a handful of years later he put the U.S. on course to spend nearly $2 trillion on upgrading its nuclear weapons arsenal and delivery systems over a period of 30 years. Trump has augmented the budget for and added new nuclear weapons with threats to use them.
The 70-year nuclear gloom begins to lift on January 22, 2021. The nine countries that have held the world captive to the threat of nuclear war are losing moral ground to 122 smaller countries that approved the world’s first nuclear weapons ban in July 2017. Once 50 of those 122 approving countries completed the ratification process of the UN Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in their legislatures, it became international law in October 2020. The law goes into effect January 22, 2021 to the profound relief of most people of the world. Those now 51 “freedom fighter” countries commit to having nothing to do with nuclear weapons – no design, testing, manufacturing, storage, transport, use or threat of use. Consider this a marathon for disarmament to outpace the current nuclear arms race in which all nuclear-armed countries are, in lockstep, upgrading their weapons. And this is only the beginning. Thirty five additional countries are in the process of ratifying the Treaty; 50 more support the Treaty; a dozen more have immense popular support, among them Canada, and are one election away from signing the Treaty. If the United States, where a majority of citizens does not want to use nuclear weapons, signed the Treaty, the rest would follow. Actions of note:
A limited nuclear war could trigger a global famine that would likely end billions of lives. A full scale nuclear war would end human and most other life on Earth, reminding us of the classical depiction of total war: they had to destroy the village to save it. A nuclear war, whether by accident, misjudgment or intention to destroy the enemy would destroy the rest of us as well – how insane is that? What then can President-elect Biden do? Open dialogue with and renew nuclear agreements and diplomacy with Russia immediately. Change US policy in 3 key ways: No first use of nuclear weapons; take weapons off of hair trigger alert; and select another senior official to share decision-making about “pressing the button.” Revive the agreement with Iran: they do not develop nuclear weapons, we lift sanctions. With South Korea, engage in diplomacy with North Korea to freeze and roll back their nuclear weapons program. Stop the new program of upgrading nuclear weapons. Listen to the world’s majority and lead the United States toward signing the new UN Treaty and the others will follow. It is our only solution to exit a dead-end system that permits a single human being, in the words of national security analyst Joseph Cirincione, “to destroy in minutes all that humanity has constructed over millennia.” Pat Hynes, retired from Boston University, is on the board of the Traprock Center for Peace and Justice https://traprock.org. |
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Biden can’t ignore that continuing crisis -the danger of nuclear annihilation
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Biden can’t lose sight of the nuclear crisis, https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/01/19/biden-cant-lose-sight-nuclear-crisis/
by Katrina vanden Heuvel, Columnist, Jan. 20, 2021
At Wednesday’s inauguration, President-elect Joe Biden is likely to address the “four historic crises” he has repeatedly identified as confronting our country: a global pandemic, a severe recession, climate change and systemic racism. Yet even as so many challenges compete for our attention, we can’t afford to lose sight of a fifth crisis: the continued danger of nuclear annihilation. Overlooking the nuclear crisis might feel unthinkable for Americans who came of age during the Cold War, when nuclear destruction preoccupied our collective imagination. In 1983, for instance, 100 million Americans watched “The Day After,” a made-for-TV movie that depicted a potential nuclear holocaust. As detailed in a recent documentary, its haunting images — which included a mushroom cloud erupting over the plains of Kansas and scorching bodies in its blast radius — terrified viewers, including President Ronald Reagan. And it spurred our political leaders to join millions of grass-roots activists around the globe in taking action to prevent nuclear war. While nuclear conflict has largely faded from public consciousness, it still poses a clear and present danger. America is now locked in a new Cold War with Russia, with multiple direct engagements between the two countries’ forces and rising tensions between Russia and the United States’ NATO allies. Meanwhile, the United States and Russia still maintain nearly 2,000 atomic bombs on hair-trigger alert. It’s no wonder that, last year, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists adjusted its Doomsday Clock to reflect an increased likelihood of global annihilation. It is high time to step back from the brink of catastrophe. Fortunately, Biden has long championed stronger nuclear arms controls. And his administration can act immediately to make our world safer. Biden will have just two weeks to complete the first move, as the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) between the United States and Russia is set to expire on February 5. Negotiated by the Obama administration, the pact limits the capabilities of the two countries’ respective nuclear arsenals. Allowing it to lapse would represent yet another blow to the international arms control framework that protected us for decades and is being systematically dismantled. President George W. Bush, for instance, ended America’s Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty with Russia. And President Trump pulled us from the Open Skies Treaty despite the pleas of our allies. The good news is that both Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin have expressed willingness to reverse that dangerous trend and extend New START — which can be accomplished through a simple exchange of diplomatic letters. The Biden administration should make this goal an immediate priority. Preserving New START, while an important step, should also be exactly what it sounds like: a start. There are many other actions Biden should take to reduce the likelihood of nuclear conflict — and move our nation further toward the ultimate goal of abolishing all nuclear weapons. Former defense secretary William Perry and nuclear scholar Tom Collina outline a series of strong steps in their recent book, “The Button.” One key suggestion is retiring the nuclear football that gives presidents the sole discretion to launch atomic attacks. Even after Trump was banned from tweeting, he still wielded unfettered power to destroy the world. We can’t ever allow that situation to repeat itself. All subsequent presidents should have to share this authority with a select group from Congress. Biden should also scrap the Trump administration’s plans to spend $264 billion on a new generation of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs). These land-based weapons offer little military value, since our nuclear-armed submarines can already retaliate against another country’s first strike. And building more ICBMs only heightens our very real risk of accidentally launching a nuclear war. These actions should be accompanied by a broader reimagining of our national security. America is poised to spend $2 trillion over the next 30 years replacing every Cold War submarine, bomber, missile and warhead. These expenditures aren’t driven by military necessity or grand strategic plan, but they do have the support of hundreds of defense industry lobbyists. Protracted cold wars with powers like Russia and China aren’t just dangerous — they’re also expensive and distracting. And as America confronts multiple crises, we simply can’t afford to engage in them. We can prevent future conflicts by balancing sober realism with well-measured diplomacy — including reestablishing bonds with the many long-standing allies Trump spurned. As former governor Jerry Brown (D-Calif.) argued in a just-released open letter to Biden, reopening dialogue with Russia around the nuclear crisis would allow us to end the arms race and free up resources to enact the core elements of Biden’s agenda — from delivering covid-19 relief to combating climate change to advancing racial justice. While the destruction portrayed in “The Day After” no longer dominates our public consciousness, the threat of nuclear war remains a vital issue. Today, those who understand what is at stake should recapture the energy of previous generations and ensure our new administration understands the danger we face. In the words of Perry and Collina: “We need to bring the bomb into the new mass movement.” The president-elect must recognize both the danger — and the opportunity — at hand. |
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Australian company Silex with Canadian company Cameco buys out GE-Hitachi Global Laser Enrichment LLC (GLE)
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US government approves GLE restructure WNN, 19 January 2021 A proposed restructuring of GE-Hitachi Global Laser Enrichment LLC (GLE) has received the final key approval from the US government. The restructure will see Australian research and development company Silex Systems and Canadian company Cameco Corporation increase their holdings in the company to 51% and 49%, respectively.GLE has exclusive rights to commercially develop the SILEX laser isotope separation process technology under an agreement reached between GE (now GE-Hitachi) and Silex in early 2006. Cameco joined the project in mid-2008. GE-Hitachi in 2016 announced its decision to leave the venture, leading to GLE’s restructure. Silex and Cameco in December 2019 agreed to jointly purchase GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy’s 76% interest for a total of USD20 million, and the three parties executed a binding Membership Interest Purchase Agreement (MIPA) for the restructure of GLE.
Silex yesterday said the US Department of the Treasury Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) has approved the transaction under the terms of Section 721 of the Defense Production Act of 1950, after concluding that there are no unresolved national security concerns arising from the transaction. GLE earlier this month received notice from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) that it will be granted a stand-alone Facility Clearance, which will enable GLE to continue to operate under new ownership as a foreign owned entity, pursuant to closing of the MIPA…….. https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/US-government-approves-GLE-restructure |
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Biden hits reset on US climate action – and turns up the heat on Morrison — RenewEconomy
One of Biden’s first acts as president was to see the US re-join the Paris Agreement, causing pressure on Morrison to do more on climate to ramp up another few notches. The post Biden hits reset on US climate action – and turns up the heat on Morrison appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Biden hits reset on US climate action – and turns up the heat on Morrison — RenewEconomy
Home battery uptake sets record highs in Victoria — RenewEconomy
New data shows Victoria closed out 2020 with records for solar battery rebate uptake and installation, as fortnightly allocations of discounted home batteries get “snapped up.” The post Home battery uptake sets record highs in Victoria appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Home battery uptake sets record highs in Victoria — RenewEconomy
Shaded, not stewed: Solar study examines how PV could protect fruit orchards — RenewEconomy
Victoria government study to examine how solar panels could be used to protect fruit orchards and other food crops from extreme heat events. The post Shaded, not stewed: Solar study examines how PV could protect fruit orchards appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Shaded, not stewed: Solar study examines how PV could protect fruit orchards — RenewEconomy
State governments key to unlocking rooftop solar for renters, says thinktank — RenewEconomy
New study finds coordinated state government policies could be key to breaking down the barriers to installing solar for renters. The post State governments key to unlocking rooftop solar for renters, says thinktank appeared first on RenewEconomy.
State governments key to unlocking rooftop solar for renters, says thinktank — RenewEconomy
January 20 Energy News — geoharvey
Opinion: ¶ “SpaceX Will Repurpose Oil Rigs To Build Starship Spaceport At Sea” • SpaceX is planning to use Gulf oil rigs off South Texas to build a Starship Spaceport. This seems extremely symbolic. SpaceX, founded by Elon Musk, is going to take something old, which has caused a lot of environmental problems, and use […]
January 20 Energy News — geoharvey
Principles of simple technologies — The Earthbound Report
I recently reviewed Philippe Bihouix’s book The Age of Low Tech, which makes the case for reducing our dependence on technological solutions to climate change. Instead, he argues that we should prioritise low tech solutions. A chapter of the book outlines the kind of thing he means, describing ‘the principles of simple technologies’. This reminded […]
Principles of simple technologies — The Earthbound Report
China delivers a surprise 2020 renewable boom, but it may not last — RenewEconomy
New data suggest a mind-boggling installation rate for wind power in China in 2020, but must be maintained for many more years to cut coal. The post China delivers a surprise 2020 renewable boom, but it may not last appeared first on RenewEconomy.
China delivers a surprise 2020 renewable boom, but it may not last — RenewEconomy
Nuclear weapons ban treaty: more than a symbolic victory
Nuclear weapons ban treaty: more than a symbolic victory, https://www.croakey.org/nuclear-weapons-ban-treaty-more-than-a-symbolic-victory/ Editor: Nicole MacKeeAuthor: Sue Warehamon: January 18, 2021
As the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) comes into force later this week, Dr Sue Wareham of the Medical Association for Prevention of War outlines the local and global implications. And, she calls on the Federal Government to make an explicit declaration that nuclear weapons must never be used again under any circumstances.
Sue Wareham writes:
Here’s a good news story about health to kick off 2021. It’s not about vaccines (despite their critical importance), but about the only weapons that threaten all of us and the environment we depend on: nuclear weapons.
On Friday 22 January, the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), or nuclear weapons ban treaty, will legally come into effect. From that date, nuclear weapons – and every aspect of their existence including their development, testing, production, transfer, use and even possession – will be illegal under international law.
This is a huge achievement, and celebrations will be held around the globe, including in Australia.
Health professionals push
The legal prohibition stemmed from the health and humanitarian impacts of the weapons. They incinerate cities, kill, maim, burn and irradiate humans by the million, and destroy just about everything that health professionals need in the event of disaster. Their use could well trigger a nuclear winter that reduces food crops to starvation levels. By any measure, that’s an unconscionable affront to the healing professions.
Similarly, the momentum that led to the ban treaty was driven by health and humanitarian organisations and practitioners, in collaboration with progressive governments.
The message of prevention, especially of catastrophes for which there would be little that health professionals could do in response, was key, and remains so.
The ban treaty is an especially proud achievement for health professionals in Australia, where in 2007 the Medical Association for Prevention of War (MAPW) initiated the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), which played a leading role in the achievement of the Treaty.
The ban treaty is far from a symbolic victory; the 
are huge, even without all nations – including those with the weapons – yet coming on board.
Associated with illegality
Nuclear weapons and those nations that possess or promote them will now be associated with illegality, which provides strong political leverage with which to press for abolition of the weapons.
This has certainly been the experience with the prohibition by treaty of other unacceptable weapons systems such as chemical and biological weapons, landmines, and cluster bombs.
Pressure will be brought to bear on financial, academic and other institutions that receive funding from, or invest in, the companies that make the weapons, to dissociate themselves from the purveyors of illegal goods; this has already begun (see, for example, here, here, and here) and will increase.
This is not only morally and medically repugnant, but such implicit threats of nuclear terror will now be, as of 22 January, illegal under international law.
The ban treaty comes none too soon. The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists warned in January 2020 of the undermining of “cooperative, science- and law-based approaches to managing the most urgent threats to humanity”, and that “civilisation-ending nuclear war – whether started by design, blunder, or simple miscommunication – is a genuine possibility”.
The risk of nuclear war was assessed as higher than it’s ever been. If any further evidence were needed of the perilous state in which humanity exists, we were reminded recently that the US nuclear arsenal can be launched by one person, the president, regardless of whether that person happens to be an unhinged narcissist.
Call for change
Australia’s policy must change. There must be an explicit declaration that nuclear weapons must never be used again under any circumstances. And there must be a commitment to the urgent abolition of these weapons as the only way to ensure this.
Preventive health demands nothing less, and the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons is the only global initiative that is leading us towards these goals. Australia must sign and ratify it.
The nuclear weapons ban treaty is supported by peak Australian and global health bodies, including the Australian Medical Association, the World Medical Association, the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation, the International Council of Nurses, the Public Health Association of Australia, and the World Federation of Public Health Associations.
MAPW is calling on the Health Minister Greg Hunt to declare that:
- Nuclear weapons must never be used, under any circumstances; and
- It is a medical and public health imperative to prohibit and eliminate nuclear weapons.
Readers are encouraged to join the call; you can do so here. It will be delivered to the Minister on 22 January, the day the TPNW comes into force. It will also be sent to the Shadow Health Minister Chris Bowen. Pleasingly, ALP policy is to support the TPNW when in government; that commitment must remain solid.
Since the first – and, thus far, the only – use of nuclear weapons in war in 1945, health professionals have played leading roles in the quest for their elimination. This critically important role continues. We have the weight of medical authority, moral authority and now unequivocal legal authority with which to exert political pressure.
Dr Sue Wareham OAM is President of the Medical Association for Prevention of War, and board member, ICAN (the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons) Australia.
Get nukes out of our Super funds!
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Contact these funds direct to tell them what you think of investing in illegal, inhuman and indiscriminate weapons – Care Super, CBUS, Uni Super, Future Fund. If you are a member of any of these funds, consider switching to a Super fund that supports the abolition of nuclear weapons – there is a list here: https://quitnukes.org/honour-roll/ Nuclear weapons are now illegal under International Law, but Australia is following the lead of nuclear armed states and not signed on yet. Support ICAN’s push to get our politicians to sign on – check if your local MP has signed the pledge here and make sure your local council has endorsed the ICAN Cities Appeal. Friends of the Earth Australia is a proud Partner Organisation of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) Coalition |
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USA has influential Committee to Defend our citizen, Julian Assange
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A project of the Courage Foundation, the Assange Defense Committee is a national coalition fighting to free WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. Comprising human rights defenders, press freedom advocates, civil liberties lawyers, and supporters across the United States, the Committee organizes public rallies, provides essential resources, and raises awareness about the unprecedented prosecution against Julian Assange and the threat it poses to the freedom of the press around the world. In supporting journalists’ right to publish, the Assange Defense Committee is upholding the public’s right to know what its government is doing in its name. Co-chairsThe Committee calls for Julian Assange’s immediate release, charges to be dropped, safe passage to the secure location of his choosing, and compensation for the psychological torture and arbitrary detention he has endured. Noam Chomsky Alice Walker Daniel Ellsberg Advisory BoardLeading journalists, lawyers, whistleblowers, and human rights defenders advising the Assange Defense Committee. See our supporters page for high-profile individuals and organizations who are standing up for Assange’s right to publish and your right to know………https://assangedefense.org/about/?fbclid=IwAR06__azOpLuMwwwNxlVcH2I3u7ZThlGnLHiVkhGmuX_HO-d4EDCo0N_fb0 |
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Gas companies rank among largest funders of Australian political parties — RenewEconomy
Australia’s mining and gas companies named as by far the largest backers of Australia’s political parties, buying “deeply problematic” influence, new analysis shows. The post Gas companies rank among largest funders of Australian political parties appeared first on RenewEconomy.
Gas companies rank among largest funders of Australian political parties — RenewEconomy
1 This month
17 October, Free Public Talk on Nuclear Issues in South Australia
David Noonan will speak on public interest concerns over the new Roxby Downs Indenture Act 2026 on BHP copper-uranium mining and ore processing in SA, and on how AUKUS may face SA with a High-Level nuclear waste agenda.
Dr Jim Green will discuss international developments in the field of nuclear power including ‘small modular reactors’ and Generation 4 ‘advanced’ nuclear reactor concepts.
Help Aunty Sue Protect Her Land and Sacred Sites From Destructive Rocket Testing.
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Australians deserve the truth
about
AUKUS – https://aukuspublicinquiry.com/
PETITION – To: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the Australian Labor Government
of the week – Australians for War Powers Reform (AWPR)
To see nuclear-related stories in greater depth and intensity
