U.S. Nuclear Disarmament Leadership Needed, Says USCCB’s Committee Chair

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Bishops’ International Justice and Peace Committee has urged Secretary of State, John Kerry, to step up efforts to advance nuclear disarmament and ensure the success of a multilateral conference being held in New York.

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Bishops’ International Justice and Peace Committee has urged Secretary of State, John Kerry, to step up efforts to advance nuclear disarmament and ensure the success of a multilateral conference being held in New York. The comments were made in a May 12 letter issued as the Ninth Review Conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) meeting continues at the United Nations.

 “For most Americans, there is an assumption that the nuclear threat receded with the end of the Cold War. Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth,” said Bishop Oscar Cantú of Las Cruces, New Mexico, chairman of the Committee. “In a multi-polar world where there are risks of nuclear proliferation and even nuclear terrorism, it is imperative that the world move systematically and relentlessly toward nuclear disarmament and the securing of nuclear materials. Preserving the NPT is a cornerstone of this effort.”

The International Justice and Peace Committee also urged bold and concrete commitments to “accelerate verifiable nuclear disarmament, including taking weapons off ‘launch on warning’ status to prevent a catastrophic accident, deeper cuts in nuclear arsenals, ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, and serious negotiations on a fissile material cut-off treaty and other prudent measures.”

The full text of the letter is available at www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/human-life-and-dignity/war-and-peace/nuclear-weapons/letter-to-secretary-kerry-from-bishop-cantu-on-non-proliferation-of-nuclear-weapons-2015-05-12.cfm.

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Keywords: U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, USCCB, Bishop Oscar Cantú, Committee on International Justice and Peace, Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, NPT, United Nations, State Department, John Kerry

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