A New Nuclear Arms Treaty - Call on President Obama to Act Now!

We have drafted the following letter for you to review, sign, and send on to President Obama. To send it electronically - highlight the letter, go to edit and hit copy, and then press this link to President Obama’s office in the White House. Once on the White House website enter your name and other information requested and then post the letter to the comment section(using edit again and hitting paste) . You can, and should, modify the letter before you send it; but remember, keep it brief and focused. If you would like to send it regular mail highlight the letter, post it to a word document, personalize and modify it , and make a copy. Send it to:
President Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20500.
Or you can call the White House and leave a message with a live operator on this issue. The White House number is 202.456.1111.

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Dear President Obama,

Congratulations on your strong commitment to negotiate a new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty with Russia before expiration of Start 1 at the end of this year. I also applaud your leadership in pledging to build on that treaty to include ALL nuclear weapons states in our shared vision to eventually eliminate all nuclear weapons. While I agree that this goal may not be reached quickly, I was disturbed that you chose to add—“perhaps not in my lifetime.” If we are truly committed to moving beyond a world where we are merely one miscalculation by a nuclear armed country away from the extermination of all life on earth – then surely we must be able to envision that it can be achieved in a time frame less than a lifetime.

I would also hope that you quickly move further than the current cuts your budget has made in Missile defense systems deployed in Europe. For too long, the folly of pursing an impossible to achieve impenetrable shield has served only to drain resources that could be better spent in diplomatic initiatives to lessen the nuclear threat. Continued pursuit of these systems will only make future negotiations on arms reductions that much more difficult. As we witness more and more nations around the world seeking the status and the false security that comes with the acquisition of nuclear arms, the imperative for the United States, Russia, and the remaining nuclear nations to lead the way toward eventual abolition is critical, and we further applaud your commitment to aggressively pursue U.S.ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty this year.

I strongly urge you to embrace the following Five Point Plan as part of any new treaty on nuclear arms:

1) U.S. & Russia reduce deployed warheads to 1000 each with ALL nukes on the reductions table, including thousands now excluded as "in reserve".
2) U.S. unilaterally takes all nuclear weapons off of hair-trigger alert.
3) U.S. unilaterally eliminates all 200-300 short-range nuclear weapons deployed in Europe, challenges Russia to significantly reduce its 3,000 short-range weapons stockpile.
4) Establish a new international pact to end production of weapons-grade nuclear fuel.
5) U.S. pledge to build no new nuclear weapons, to be reflected in the Presidents first Nuclear Review due in December

Once the United States and Russia have sent the clear signal to the international community that they are serious about their obligations under Article VI of the Non Proliferation Treaty, it will be time to engage in the next phase – to bring ALL of the remaining nuclear nations to the table as well.

I strongly support your efforts and will do whatever I can to encourage our elected representatives in Congress to approve legislative initiatives that will reduce and eliminate nuclear weapons.

The goal of getting to zero is no longer merely a hoped for dream - but a critical necessity if we are to form a secure foundation for future generations to live and prosper. It is time to finally embrace the end goal of the Non-Proliferation Treaty - a world free of nuclear weapons.

Sincerely,
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