Peace - the solutions

The majority of the world has already shown us the solution to the problem of nuclear weapons - by rejecting them. The fact is only 9 of the world 's 195 nations now possess them. Many countries have gone down the nuclear weapons path then turned pack – realising that they do not increase their security.

Since the end of the Cold War South Africa has unilaterally dismantled its nuclear weapons, and Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan have all rejected the weapons they inherited from the Soviet Union. Sweden, Brazil, Argentina, Taiwan and Libya also decided to abandon their programmes to develop nuclear weapons.

Today we have a real opportunity to create, step by step, a more peaceful world.

Defence and security experts from around the globe now agree that a ban on nuclear weapons is achievable and have put together a comprehensive roadmap for global disarmament. President Obama is backing the plan and as a first step is working with the Russians to drastically reduce the vast US and Russian nuclear arsenals.

The disarmament roadmap

Decades of research and negotiations have given the world a clear roadmap to a world free of nuclear weapons. All the essential steps – from banning weapons materials to monitoring to ensure nations don't cheat the system – are clear. What's needed is concerted pressure on countries to start putting the roadmap into action. And pressure is now building on them to get their act together.

Global Zero

In 2008 100 leaders from around the world launched the Global Zero plan for the phased, verified elimination of nuclear weapons, right down to a global zero.  The growing group includes former heads of state, former foreign ministers, former defense ministers, former national security advisors, and more than 20 former top military commanders.  

Nuclear Security Project

Similarly ex cold war warrior Henry Kissinger, and other former senior US ministers surprised the world when in 2007 they wrote a joint op ed in US newspaper the Wall Street Journal calling for action to cut nuclear weapons. Link: They have since launched the Nuclear Security Project to ‘galvanize global support for and action on the vision of a world free of nuclear weapons and the urgent steps needed to reach that goal’.

More and more members of the UK military are speaking out against nuclear weapons

Gen Jack Sheehan, former NATO Supreme Allied Commander, former Chief of the Defence Staff Field Marshal Lord Bramall, General Lord Ramsbotham and General Sir Hugh Beach have all described the UK nuclear arsenal as 'irrelevant' and called for it to be scrapped.

Both the ex head of the army General Richard Dannatt and current head Sir David Richards have warned against spending large amounts on new weapons systems that are not relevant to modern conflicts.

Tackling climate change together

The world is warming up. Already 150,000 people are dying every year because of climate change and, within 50 years, one-third of all land-based species could face extinction. If we carry on the way we are now, by 2100 the planet will likely be hotter than it's been at any point in the past two million years.

Catastrophic climate change isn't inevitable, but tackling this threat will require unprecedented global action. The first and worst impacts of climate change are felt by the poor in the developing world. The responsibility for the problem, however, lies primarily with the rich industrialised nations, and increasingly the rapidly industrialising nations.

Since all countries are potentially affected by and contribute to climate change, we must all work together for a solution. The tens of billions of pounds that would be wasted on a new nuclear bomb could instead put us on the low carbon pathway needed to tackle climate change and position the UK as a world leader in developing low carbon technologies.