Greenpeace has joined with other groups in setting up citizens inspections of illegal nuclear weapons sites around the world.
Despite the fact that the treaty obligates the "official"
nuclearweapons states to pursue nuclear disarmament, a US State
Departmentofficial is quoted in the National Security Newswire as
stating "we donot accept this notion that the United States must
take steps to"devalue" nuclear weapons to be in compliance."
Butcountries pursuing nuclear capability like Korea and possibly
Iran arenot going to "devalue" the quest for nuclear weapons in a
world inwhich being a nuclear power like the US means the ability
to conduct aunilateral, pre-emptive war fighting strategy.
While the US declared Iraq in violation of international law
over anuclear weapons programme that didn't actually exist, the
US, andthe other nuclear weapons states, UK, France, Russia, China,
Pakistan,India, and Israel are in violation of international law
with their ownvery real arsenals.
The International Court of Justice decided in 1998 that the
threat or use of nuclear weapons is illegal.
It'stherefore up to all of us to enforce the law. Greenpeace has
partneredwith other peace organisations to begin a series of
"Citizens'Inspections" of nuclear weapons sites.
France
Accompanied by a flotilla of 35 yachts from the Brest area, the
Greenpeace ship Arctic Sunrise entered the military exclusion
zone around the French Military Nuclear Base at L'Isle Longue
near Brest on Sunday, May 15th, after announcing our intention by
radio to conduct a citizens' inspection.
We had information that two of the four French nuclear-armed
submarines wereat the base during the inspection (although of
course governmentofficials never confirm or deny this kind of
information), with a totalfire power of 1000 times the Hiroshima
bomb.
When the ArcticSunrise was stopped by two French military boats,
GP France CampaignDirector Yannick Jadot, accompanied by two of the
Arctic Sunrise Crew, Erkutand Craig, continued the citizens'
inspection by inflatable zodiac,finally being stopped by a boat
full of well-armed French commandos. Atthe same time, the citizens'
inspection was backed up by 150 Greenpeacesupporters and local
activists, as well as members of the ArcticSunrise crew, who
marched to the front entrance of the nuclear base,demonstrating
against the continued presence of nuclear weapons.
"Wegot to within 100 meters of a
nuclear armed submarine" said YannickJadot "in an unarmed
inflatable raft. Nuclear weapons cannot bemade secure."
Belgium
InApril
our activists joined with regular Bombspotting activists toinspect
three military facilities in Belgium, with the aim ofpressuring
NATO member states to renounce their nuclear weaponsarsenal. The
inspections took place at Kleine Brogel Air basewhich houses
nuclear weapons, NATO's Brussels Headquarters and itsSHAPE military
headquarters in Mons/Bergen.
1000 activists showed up to carry out the inspection. 500
bombspotters were arrested. A massive police presence greeted
inspectors from Greenpeace and Bombspotting at NATO- HQ.
Australia
Mayor Murray Matson led a Citizens Weapons Inspection
team of local dignataries and Greenpeace activists to
Lucas Heights to check on secretive research into uranium
enrichment.
"Wewere always told this was a medical research facility...
while thisstory was being told to us, all along there was another
type ofresearch going on, uranium enrichment, that is conducive to
producingnuclear weapons," said Dr Tilman Ruff, president-elect of
the MedicalAssociation for the Prevention of War.
Mayor Matson is a member of
Mayors for Peace, an initiative begun by the mayor of Hiroshima
to abolish nuclear weapons.
Turkey
InTurkey
we've established a semi-permanent inspection facility about
50meters from the entrance to the Incirlik NATO Air Base near
Adana: thePeace Embassy.
Polling data in Turkey has shown that less thanhalf of the
population is aware that US nuclear weapons are actuallypresent in
their country, and 72% support Turkey being a nuclear freezone.
ThisPeace Embassy is being established at a time when a report
beingdiscussed by the US Congress could result in additional US
nuclearweapons being stationed in Turkey.
"These US nuclear weapons stationed in Turkey are a danger to regional stability and global security",says Aslýhan Tümer,
our Nuclear Disarmament campaigner in theMediterranean, "We're
bearing witness, and calling on Prime minister Erdogan to say no to
any US nuclear weapons in Turkey"
ThePeace Embassy has created a weblog which they will maintain
throughouttheir presence. As Ertank noted in one post: "Incirlik
is astrange town. The only means of economy is the Americans. There
is nosingle shop with a Turkish name here. They work for the
American troopsand their wives."
Escalating pressure
Greenpeace, along with Bombspotting and othercitizen inspection
groups, will be escalating their pressure on thecountries owning
and hosting nuclear weapons as we move closer to the60th
anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima on August 6th.
"Weare part of a growing network of people who will continue to conductthese inspections,"
said our campaigner Nicky Davies. "We're callingupon all our
supporters and activists to join in increasing thepressure on the
nuclear weapons states to abolish nuclear weapons."
You can help by writing
today to the Prime Minister to ask that Turkey become
nuclear-free.
Want to organise your own citizen's inspection of a nuclear weapons facility near you?
You can find out where nuclear weapons are stationed all over
the worldwith our Zoom on Doom map (below), and you can download
materials andfind out more from the Citizens'
Inspection Working Group of the Abolition 2000 Campaign.
Nukes out of Turkey
Join our Peace Embassy in asking the Prime Minister of Turkey to make nuclear weapons unwelcome in his country.
Give peace a chance
Help keep Greenpeace working for the abolition of nuclear weapons. To preserve our independence, we don't accept money from governments or corporations: we count on you to help us give peace a chance.