International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN)

Despite the end of the Cold War, the nuclear threat has not diminished and, in important ways, has become more ominous. The US and Russia still possess more than 20,000 nuclear weapons between them, and there are seven other nuclear weapon states, some in volatile regions of the world. Proliferation to additional countries is a constant worry, as is the possibility that terrorist groups such as al Qaeda may obtain and use nuclear weapons.

The policies of the nuclear weapon states themselves have moved beyond strictly defined concepts of deterrence against other nuclear-armed countries, and now contemplate the use of nuclear weapons in a variety of conflict situations. In the meantime, the nuclear weapon states, following the US lead, for almost 40 years have avoided their nuclear disarmament obligations under the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), increasing the likelihood that others will want and obtain nuclear weapons.

Mounting concern over the nuclear threat and frustration with gridlocked disarmament discussions in UN committees and other arms control forums, prompted IPPNW to launch the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) in 2007. The goal of ICAN is to reawaken public concern about the growing threat posed by nuclear weapons, and to mobilize civil society to demand a nuclear-weapon-free world through the negotiation and adoption of a Nuclear Weapons Convention.

In 2008 and 2009, ICAN activists will make the case that, along with global warming, nuclear war is the greatest preventable danger facing humankind. IPPNW will promote the Nuclear Weapons Convention both inside and outside the UN, and will focus on specific medical issues, including the climate effects of regional nuclear war ("nuclear famine"), the use of highly enriched uranium (HEU) in radiopharmaceutical production, and the health impacts of an expanding uranium mining industry.

In 2007 and early 2008, IPPNW successfully launched ICAN at the Non-Proliferation Treaty Preparatory Committee conference in Vienna, and at national launch events in Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, India, Norway, Sweden, the UK, and other affiliate countries. ICAN's global partners, in addition to IPPNW's network of more than 60 national affiliates, include the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) in the UK, Mayors for Peace, the Abolition 2000 network of disarmament NGOs, the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, the Nobel Women's Initiative, Mouvement de la Paix, and the World Federation of United Nations Associations (WFUNA). IPPNW's abolition goals have also been reinforced by participation in the Middle Powers Initiative (MPI), and in a coalition of international lawyers and peace activists seeking a new advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice. To read the the ICAN Action Plan, go here.

For more information about the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), contact John Loretz, Program Director, IPPNW, 727 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 02139; 617-868-5050, ext. 280.