Seizing Opportunity in Hiroshima

Obama should seize his chance in Hiroshima - “Given the 70-year alliance between Japan and the United States that has flourished since the end of the war, Mr. Obama’s decision to visit the [Hiroshima] memorial seems well overdue… The visit gives him a significant opportunity to offer some tangible new initiatives to advance his vision of a nuclear-free world — a major goal at the outset of his administration that has since faded against a host of other foreign policy challenges,” writes The New York Times Editorial Board.

--“Nothing is more at odds with [Obama’s] vision than his befuddling support for a $1 trillion program to rebuild the American arsenal over the next 30 years. But there are still opportunities to improve his credibility — small steps like canceling the new air-launched, nuclear-armed cruise missile and persuading the United Nations Security Council to endorse the nuclear test moratorium that all countries but North Korea observe. Perhaps, too, in his visit to Hiroshima, a strong speech and even a new initiative.” Full article here. http://nyti.ms/1WqqQkc

Make Hiroshima trip worthwhile - In Hiroshima, Obama should “look forward to ensure that nuclear weapons are never used again… If Obama wants to fulfill his promises to “put an end to Cold War thinking” and “reduce the role of nuclear weapons in our national security strategy,” he must do more. And he can, even as his time in office winds down… Here are four practical ideas that should be part of Obama’s Hiroshima speech,” Tom Collina writes in Foreign Policy.

--Obama’s speech should support the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty, call for reductions to the U.S. nuclear weapons arsenal, promise to cut down plans to buy more nukes and announce the retirement of land-based nuclear weapons, Collina argues. “Now is the time for real action, and there’s no place better for a statement of intent. Obama should go to Hiroshima and boldly lead the world away from nuclear weapons... Mr. President, go to Hiroshima — and stick the landing.” Full article here. http://atfp.co/1sdkFDn

See also - “What President Obama Should Say When He Goes to Hiroshima,” by David Wright and Lisbeth Gronlund. http://huff.to/1VT3umA

Tweet - @enfein: Want to know which Members of Congress Support President Obama's Hiroshima Visit? http://bit.ly/27eDyWs via @womensaction

Heavy water amendment sinks - “The Senate on Wednesday blocked a Republican effort aimed at undercutting last year’s landmark international nuclear deal with Iran. The Senate fell three votes short of the 60-vote threshold — 57-42 — to move ahead on the amendment sponsored by freshman Republican Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas. Cotton’s proposed provision would have barred the United States from using taxpayer dollars to buy any more Iranian ‘heavy water,’” writes Richard Lardner for the AP.

--“The Obama administration bought 32 metric tons of heavy water from Tehran last month, an $8.6 million deal that helped Iran meet the nuclear agreement’s terms… Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said defeating Cotton’s amendment demonstrates that the Senate can function properly. ‘If we want to show that we can run this place and get business done, poison pills have no place in appropriations bills,’ Feinstein said.” Full article here. http://wapo.st/1WslFQa

U.S. must comply with Iran Deal - “Businesses around the world are using the United States as an excuse to avoid doing business with Iran, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Tuesday as he declared the Islamic Republic ‘open for business’ for European banks… ‘Iran has a right to the benefits of the agreement they signed up to,’ Kerry said. ‘If people by confusion or misinterpretation or in some cases disinformation are being misled, it’s appropriate for us to try to clarify that.’” Full article by Josh Lederman for the AP here. http://wapo.st/1Wma7xS

Nuclear choices for next president - “President Obama entered office with a bold vision, determined to end the Cold War thinking that distorted our nuclear posture. He failed. He has a few more moves he could still make — particularly with his speech in Hiroshima later this month — but the next president will inherit a nuclear mess,” writes Ploughshares Fund President Joe Cirincione for Huffington Post. The next president will face four nuclear threats: terrorism, proliferation, problems with existing arsenals and financial waste.

--“The next president cannot make the mistake of believing that incremental change in our nuclear policies will be enough to avoid disaster… There is serious work to be done. We need a new plan to accelerate the elimination of nuclear material. We need a new strategy for North Korea. But most of all, we need a new strategy for America. It starts with us. As long as we keep a stockpile of nuclear weapons far in excess of any conceivable need, how can we convince other nations to give up theirs?” http://huff.to/1Xjs4wC

See also - “Global Zero Urges Obama to Announce Urgent Action in Hiroshima to Reduce Nuclear Risks,” a statement by Derek Johnson for Global Zero. http://bit.ly/1NrDlcb

Iran deal criticism is off the mark - “To hear critics tell it, [senior White House advisor Ben] Rhodes’ wholesale manipulation of a naïve press corps, seduction of existing nuclear nonproliferation experts, and manufacture of new such experts prevented the nuclear deal from meeting its deserved date with destiny,” writes Richard Nephew for The Hill. “To quote Joe Cirincione, one of the experts dismissed by Samuels (who we have since learned is himself an opponent of the Iran deal), ‘This is utter nonsense.’”

--“The very idea that passing along talking points in defense of the Iran deal is a problem smacks of truly absurd, outrageous, and unmistakable hypocrisy. To be blunt: I have read along with U.S. Senators asking questions about the deal from lists provided by certain U.S. lobbying organizations to ensure that critics of the Iran negotiations spoke with one voice… Some of these very individuals continue to advise members of Congress today on the content of legislation, steering them in their creation of arguments and lines of attack.” Full piece here. http://bit.ly/1TDlHOD

See also - “Deception and the Iran deal: Did the Obama administration mislead America, or did the Rhodes profile?” by Suzanne Maloney for Brookings. http://brook.gs/1X2B4pi

How many nukes needed for deterrence? - The Future of Life Institute partnered with NukeMap to create an interactive map that shows how large an area would be destroyed and how many lives lost by a bomb dropped on each of the declassified targets. “Even though today’s nuclear targets list is classified, it probably doesn’t look dramatically different… This unstable situation is extremely risky and has repeatedly come close to triggering nuclear war by accident,” according to Future of Life. Try out the interactive map here. http://bit.ly/24BLsXG

Quick Hits:

--“In Hiroshima, Obama should chart course for nuclear weapons free world,” by Daryl Kimball for Kyodo News. http://bit.ly/1rHQtjd

--“Additional Weirdness in Opposition to the Iran Nuclear Agreement,” by Paul Pillar for National Interest. http://bit.ly/1X3YWsL

--“Chuck Hagel to Next US President: Talk to Putin,” by Ashish Kumar Sen for the Atlantic Council. http://bit.ly/24NZiGz

--“Why B-47s Dropped Their Test Nukes While In the Middle of a Loop,” by Sam Eifling for Popular Mechanics. http://bit.ly/24O0oCi

--“Fishermen Sue Japan for Hiding Records of Fallout From US Nuclear Tests,” by Michael Edison Hayden for ABC News. http://abcn.ws/1T32dHs

--“Residents near New Mexico nuclear test site seek Obama visit,” by Russell Contreras for the AP. http://bit.ly/1VUrh5J

--“Extremists fear the Iranian nuclear deal might work,” by Stephen Kinzer for The Boston Globe. http://bit.ly/1TB0Qfm

--“Update on Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site: No Indications that a Nuclear Test is Imminent,” reports Joseph S. Bermudez, Jr. for 38 North. http://bit.ly/1s0LrOB

--“Producing tritium in North Korea,” by Hugh Chalmers for Arms Control Wonk. http://bit.ly/1OkUuEz

--“10 Problems With That New York Times Magazine Profile of White House Aide Ben Rhodes,” by Eric Levitz for The New York Magazine. http://nym.ag/1TcKQCM

--“Deputy Secretary General calls for efforts to strengthen non-proliferation regime,” reports NATO. http://bit.ly/1OkXdxM

--“Obama's Visit to Hiroshima Raises Scrutiny of U.S. Arsenal,” by Toluse Olorunnipa for Bloomberg. http://bloom.bg/1rF29U0

--“On Ben Rhodes and ‘selling’ the Iran deal,” by Mark Fitzpatrick for the International Institute for Strategic Studies. http://bit.ly/1X3WQJh

Events:

--“Book Launch: The Lure and Pitfalls of MIRVs: From the First to the Second Nuclear Age,” with eight speakers. May 16 from 11:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Stimson Center, 1211 Connecticut Ave. NW, Eighth Floor, Washington. RSVP online. http://bit.ly/1UvRS7U

--“The Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty at 20: Prospects for Ratification and the Enduring Risks of Nuclear Testing,” with Daryl Kimball, Arms Control Association; Scott Kemp, MIT; Gary Samore, Harvard University. Sponsored by the Arms Control Association and American Academy of Arts and Sciences. May 19 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at 136 Irving St., Cambridge, MA. RSVP here. http://bit.ly/21zQan7

--“The Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty at 20: Prospects for Ratification and the Enduring Risks of Nuclear Testing,” with Rose Gottemoeller, undersecretary of state for arms control and international security; Siegfried Hecker, Stanford University; Arun Rath, WGBH and NPR; Robert Rosner University of Chicago; and Lassina Zerbo, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization. May 19 at 6:00 p.m. Livestream at James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies, 1400 K St. NW, Suite 1225, Washington. RSVP online. http://bit.ly/1UBws9q

--“Budget Futures: Some Assessment of the Nuclear Enterprise and Missile Defense,” with Todd Harrison, Center for Strategic and International Studies, and Evan Montgomery, Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessment. Part of the Huessy Congressional Breakfast Series. May 26 at 8:00 a.m. at the Capitol Hill Club, 300 First St. SE, Washington. RSVP online. http://conta.cc/25ULZFH

--“Global Nuclear Challenges and Solutions for the Next U.S. President,” with Benjamin Rhodes, Deputy National Security Advisor to the President, and Setsuko Thurlow, Hiroshima atomic bomb survivor, and seven other speakers. June 6 from 9:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Carnegie Endowment, Root Room, 1779 Massachusetts Ave. NW, Washington. RSVP online. http://bit.ly/23rIEK8