Too much policy, not enough law: US suspension and potential withdrawal from the INF Treaty is not only unwise, but also problematic under international law

Dr.iur. Daniel Rietiker[1] Introduction The announcement of 1st of February 2019 on the suspension and potential withdrawal by the USA from the Treaty on the elimination of intermediate-range and shorter-range missiles (hereafter: INF Treaty), a key instrument with Russia that has been a centerpiece of European security since the Cold War, followed by Russia’s prompt…

Threat and use of nuclear weapons contrary to right to life, says UN Human Rights Committee

By Daniel Rietiker Introduction On 30 October 2018, the UN Human Rights Committee (HRC), which is in charge of the implementation of the 1966 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), has adopted its General Comment (GC) no. 36 relating to the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR). It is in many respects a…

Why Swiss neutrality is no obstacle to joining the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW)

By Daniel Rietiker Introduction Neutrality is a holy cow for Switzerland and, for good reasons, one of the unifying and integrating values of its citizens. Unfortunately, this concept is often invoked in a misleading way, most recently in the debate about whether Switzerland should join the TPNW. Last week, a strong majority (16) of the…

Swiss Government not keen on ratifying the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW): A Missed Opportunity in the Fight against Nuclear Weapons

Translation from German of the Editorial by Prof. Malinverni and Dr. Daniel Rietiker published in Wochenzeitung WoZ, no 41, 11 October 2018. The authors thank Marc Finaud (GCSP) for his assistance in this translation. The Federal Council has decided not to sign the international Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW). The lawyers Daniel…

New Hope for Nuclear Disarmament or “Much Ado About Nothing?”: Legal Assessment of the New “Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons” and the Joint Statement by the USA, UK, and France Following its Adoption

Article published by Daniel Rietiker in the Harvard International Law Journal, 8 December 2017 (online). Success has become rare in the sensitive field of nuclear arms control. But what happened on 7 July 2017 at the United Nations in New York deserves to be remembered and analyzed because the adoption of a Treaty on the…

The 2018 Nuclear Posture Review (NPR) – A commentary by John Burroughs

[John Burroughs is Executive Director of Lawyers Committee on Nuclear Policy (LCNP)] The Nuclear Posture Review (NPR) released beginning of February 2018 at the Pentagon ignores international legal obligations of the United States and increases the risks of nuclear war. Prepared by the Department of Defense in consultation with other agencies, the review was approved…

Threat or Use of Weapons of Mass Destruction and the Right to Life: Follow-up Submissions to the UN Human Rights Committee on draft General Comment no. 36

International Association of Lawyers Against Nuclear Arms (IALANA) and Swiss Lawyers for Nuclear Disarmament (SLND), submitted October 5, 2017 The present submissions are limited to para. 13 of draft General Comment no. 36 on the Right to life (Article 6 ICCPR) currently under consideration,[1] which reads as follows: “The [threat] or use of weapons of…

Russian Foreign Ministry: Prohibition on nuclear weapons would be contrary to national interests (Kommersant, 12 September 2017)

МИД РФ: запрет ядерного оружия противоречит национальным интересам России Россия не будет присоединяться к открывающемуся 20 сентября к подписанию международному Договору о запрещении ядерного оружия. Об этом «Ъ» рассказал директор Департамента по вопросам нераспространения и контроля над вооружениями МИД России Михаил Ульянов. По его словам, этот документ «противоречит национальным интересам России и российскому видению того,…

IALANA Statement Regarding the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons on the Occasion of its Opening for Signature on 20 September 2017

IALANA – the International Association of Lawyers Against Nuclear Arms – welcomes the adoption on 7 July 2017 of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. The nuclear weapons ban treaty is a powerful and eloquent statement, grounded in an understanding of the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of nuclear explosions, of the political, moral, and…

Nuclear Coalitions and the Ban Treaty: A Reaction to the First Draft Treaty Text

By Daniel Rietiker (PhD), on behalf of Swiss Lawyers for Nuclear Disarmament (SLND – SAFNA)[1] June 6, 2017 Introduction In the ongoing negotiations with a view to adopting a treaty prohibiting nuclear weapons (“ban treaty”), the question whether States hosting nuclear weapons on their territory or relying on a nuclear umbrella should be able to…