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Outside View: Life after START
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September 11, 2007 |
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| In a commentary published Sept. 10, 2007, at UPI, WSI legal assistant Tom McNutt warns that Russia’s planned suspension of participation in the Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty and its warnings surrounding the proposed American missile defense shield in Europe have reflected a post-Cold War low in bilateral relations. In light of these events, transparency regarding military capabilities and nuclear weapons takes increasing prominence.
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Author(s):
Tom McNutt
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Reykjavik Revisited
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September 5, 2007 |
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| Twenty-one years ago, at the October 1986 Reykjavik Summit, President Ronald Reagan and Russian President Mikhail Gorbachev entered into an unprecedented dialogue regarding their desire to eliminate their countries’ nuclear weapons. In 2006 a conference at the Hoover Institution attempted to rekindle the vision of that historic meeting. Now, in the fall of 2007, this policy brief published collaboratively by the World Security Institute and Lawyers Alliance for World Security seeks to reinforce the goals of those who seek a world without nuclear weapons. |
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Treasury Acts Against North Korea’s Banker as Nuclear Talks Look Forward
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March 30, 2007 |
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| The Treasury Department has finalized its rule cutting off Macau’s Banco Delta Asia (BDA) from the U.S. financial system for lax institutional practices and connections to North Korean criminal activity, and now has alleged BDA connections to WMD proliferation. Ironically, while the rulemaking process and the related freezing and then relocating of accounts may have delayed nuclear talks temporarily, it appears the long-run impact might be to help pull North Korea out of the shadows and back to the negotiating table. Steven C. Welsh, CDI research analyst and legal scholar takes a closer look at the Treasury action and the six party talks. |
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UN Security Council Responds Again to Iranian Nuclear Crisis
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March 30, 2007 |
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| Proliferation risks and Iran’s lack of cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency have prompted the UN Security Council to weigh in again on the Iranian nuclear crisis, unanimously enacting another Iran resolution. Binding under international law, UNSC Resolution 1747 demands Iranian compliance and widens sanctions, even while still holding out hope for a renewal of diplomatic efforts. Meanwhile Iran has staged yet another hostage crisis, invading Iraqi waters to seize British personnel carrying out a UN mandate, later claiming to interrogate them to extract a “confession.” Steven C. Welsh, CDI research analyst and legal scholar, takes a closer look. |
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Steven C. Welsh
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International Security Law Project supersite portal
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January 1, 2007 |
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| click to be taken to CDI's International Security Law Project supersite |
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GTMO Update: Saudi detainees transferred, D.C. court dismises bin-Laden petition, courthouse controversy
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December 15, 2006 |
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| The Department of Defense on Dec. 14, 2006, announced the transfer of 16 Guantanamo Bay (GTMO) detainees to Saudi Arabia; another 100 could leave pending negotiations with home countries. Meanwhile, on Dec. 13, 2006, a D.C. federal court applying the Military Commissions Act of 2006 (MCA) threw out a GTMO habeas corpus petition, reversing its own earlier decision in litigation that led to the Hamdan v. Rumsfeld Supreme Court decision striking down GTMO military commissions, which in turn resulted in the MCA. Back on GTMO, controversial courthouse budgeting apparently will await the new Congress. Steven C. Welsh, CDI analyst and legal scholar takes a closer look.
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Iraq Study Group Readies Report
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December 5, 2006 |
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| On Dec. 6, an unofficial Iraq Study Group, spawned by members of Congress last March, will issue a report on Iraqi nation-building that aspires to provide bipartisan, independent views on the strategic environment in Iraq and its surrounding region, as well as ways to enhance Iraqi security and Iraqi economic and political development. There is speculation it could include views on U.S. force posture and potential future draw-downs. Steven C. Welsh, CDI analyst and legal scholar takes a closer look. |
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UN Security Council and IAEA Grapple with Iranian Nuclear Defiance
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November 23, 2006 |
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| The IAEA has issued a new, confidential report on its efforts to investigate the Iranian nuclear program, as Iran defiantly forges ahead, the UN Security Council wrestles with “how tough to get” in its follow-up resolution, and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Board of Governors prepares to meet starting Nov. 23, 2006. Steven C. Welsh, CDI analyst and legal scholar, examines the report and some of the related international frameworks. |
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Iraqi Tribunal Imposes Death Sentence on Saddam Hussein
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November 8, 2006 |
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| Bringing Saddam and his henchmen to justice has posed unique challenges to an Iraq seeking to rightly subject a former totalitarian dictatorship to rule of law, while also respecting rule of law by providing fair trials. The Iraqi High Tribunal has announced it is sentencing Saddam Hussein to hang for a 1982 mass killing of Shia villagers, risking controversy over whether his execution will help bring national healing, or instead forestall additional charges and a fuller historical record, while stirring international concern over whether the death penalty itself is inconsistent with rule of law. CDI analyst and legal scholar Steven C. Welsh explains. |
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World Trade Center Redevelopment; Court Rules Insurance Not Covering Improved Security
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November 8, 2006 |
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| A federal court in Manhattan has ruled that World Trade Center insurance coverage cover the replacement of the downed buildings on an “as was” basis, as they previously stood, not rebuilding them in compliance with new requirements and regulations that seek to make them more secure. At the same time, as noted below, the improvements are hypothetical given that the WTC will not be rebuilt, but have its site redeveloped to include both memorials and commercial space. CDI analyst and legal scholar Steven C. Welsh explains. |
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