President Obama on the Nuclear Weapons Free World
November 17th, 2008 by admin“With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat” — President Barack Obama, Inauguration speech, January 20, 2009.
“This is the moment when we must renew the goal of a world without nuclear weapons.” – candidate Obama in Berlin, July 24, 2008.
Here is a survey, in reverse chronological order, of relevant statements Barack Obama has posted at the White House website and made on the campaign trail.
Currently online at the website of the White House:
“Obama and Biden will set a goal of a world without nuclear weapons, and pursue it. Obama and Biden will always maintain a strong deterrent as long as nuclear weapons exist. But they will take several steps down the long road toward eliminating nuclear weapons. They will stop the development of new nuclear weapons; work with Russia to take U.S. and Russian ballistic missiles off hair trigger alert; seek dramatic reductions in U.S. and Russian stockpiles of nuclear weapons and material; and set a goal to expand the U.S.-Russian ban on intermediate-range missiles so that the agreement is global.”
From Obama's responses to an Arms Control Association Questionnaire, received on September 10, 2008:
“I have made it clear that America will not disarm unilaterally. Indeed, as long as states retain nuclear weapons, the United States will maintain a nuclear deterrent that is strong, safe, secure, and reliable. But I will not authorize the development of new nuclear weapons. And I will make the goal of eliminating nuclear weapons worldwide a central element of U.S. nuclear policy.”
“A world free of nuclear weapons is a world in which the possibility of their use no longer exists.”
(from Arms Control Today, 2008 Presidential Q & A)
In Berlin, July 24, 2008:
“This is the moment when we must renew the goal of a world without nuclear weapons. The two superpowers that faced each other across the wall of this city came too close too often to destroying all we have built and all that we love. With that wall gone, we need not stand idly by and watch the further spread of the deadly atom. It is time to secure all loose nuclear materials; to stop the spread of nuclear weapons; and to reduce the arsenals from another era. This is the moment to begin the work of seeking the peace of a world without nuclear weapons.”
At DePaul University October 2, 2007:
“Here's what I'll say as President: America seeks a world in which there are no nuclear weapons. We will not pursue unilateral disarmament. As long as nuclear weapons exist, we'll retain a strong nuclear deterrent. But we'll keep our commitment under the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty on the long road towards eliminating nuclear weapons. We'll work with Russia to take U.S. and Russian ballistic missiles off hair-trigger alert, and to dramatically reduce the stockpiles of our nuclear weapons and
material. We'll start by seeking a global ban on the production of
fissile material for weapons. And we'll set a goal to expand the U.S.-Russian ban on intermediate-range missiles so that the agreement is global”
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