UNIDIR has just
published this collection of papers by experts on the nature and causes of nuclear risk. The
same experts will be panellists in a risk symposium that will take place at the
Palais des Nations on 10 April (see our previous blog).
UNIDIR's Director,
Mr Jarmo Sareva, notes in the Foreword to the publication that irrespective of
differences in how States perceive nuclear weapons, it is apparent that a closer
understanding of the components of risk surrounding the safety and security of nuclear
weapons is warranted—with a view to reducing the probability of nuclear detonation
events.
Given the enormous
lethality of nuclear arms and their potential for global disruption, all States
share an interest in prevention, something the President of the International
Committee of the Red Cross noted at the 32nd International Conference of the
Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement in December 2015.
In 2017, a
facts-based discourse that engages the broader international community on reducing
nuclear risks has never been more important. This publication and a
symposium presenting its findings to multilateral policy practitioners on
10 April are intended to contribute to such dialogue.
Tim Caughley
Resident Senior Fellow, UNIDIR
