2010 NPT Review Conference: SIPRI briefing on the perspectives of non-nuclear weapon states

In the run-up to the 2010 Review Conference of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), SIPRI, together with the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI), has hosted a series of 'dialogue dinners' and bilateral meetings to support dialogue and discussion on issues of nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation among a number of non-nuclear weapon states (NNWS). The initiative of the four senior US statesmen - Kissinger, Schultz, Perry and Nunn - on a Vision of a World Free of Nuclear Weapons has been an integral part of the dialogue project. The project provided an opportunity for feedback and reactions from the NNWS on the initiative - a reality check - as well as a forum for discussions between the NNWS and the four statesmen. Read SIPRI's assessment of the various positions as the 2010 NPT Review Conference continues.

2010 NPT Review Conference: China will seek to balance itself between nuclear and non-nuclear weapon states according to new SIPRI report

China will be a crucial player at the NPT Review Conference in New York, according to a report by SIPRI Director Dr Bates Gill. China is unlikely to adopt positions directly in line with the United States, US allies or Russia. Rather, it will seek to balance its positions between nuclear weapon and non-nuclear weapon states.
Read the press release in English and Swedish and download the report here.

Upcoming SIPRI events and activities

• Dr Alexei Arbatov, Carnegie Moscow Centre, SIPRI Board member and Russia's leading thinker on arms control
  
• Dr Barry M. Blechman, co-founder of the Henry L. Stimson Center focused on nuclear disarmament
• Rolf Ekéus, Chairman of the SIPRI Governing Board and former member of the UN Secretary-General's Advisory Board on Disarmament
• Åsa Gustafsson, Deputy Director of the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs Department for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation
• Henrik Salander, Secretary-General of the Blix Weapons of Mass Destruction Commission 2003-2006 and Senior Advisor to SIPRI

Recent SIPRI events and activities

Discussion in Hiroshima: Realizing a nuclear-free world
Ambassador Rolf Ekéus, Chairman of the SIPRI Governing Board, participated at the 28th Annual Plenary Meeting of the InterAction Council held in Hiroshima, Japan, to mark the 65th anniversary of the dropping of the first atomic bomb. Fifteen former heads of state and government as well as 19 experts and special guests participated in the meeting and discussed how to realize a nuclear-free world. The participants issued the 'Hiroshima Declaration' which can be downloaded together with the Final Communiqué in English, French and Spanish here.

SIPRI Insights on Peace and Security no. 2010/4
China and nuclear arms control: current positions and future policies
Bates Gill
As the global nuclear arms control and non-proliferation agenda reaches a critical turning point, expectations will rise for China to take on a more proactive and constructive role. As an emerging global power, it will be more difficult for China to lay low or merely repeat longstanding declarations of principle. Moreover, the advent of more advanced conventional weapons, including missile defences and space-based weapons, places further pressures on China to revisit its policies and practices on the role of nuclear weapons.
To download the Insights paper click here.

SIPRI Fact Sheet
The SIPRI Top 100 arms-producing companies, 2008
Susan T. Jackson
The Fact Sheet lists the world's 100 largest arms-producing companies - the SIPRI Top 100 - including arms sales, total sales, total profit and total employment figures.
To download the Fact Sheet click here.

SIPRI Insights on Peace and Security no. 2010/3
End-user certificates: improving standards to prevent diversion
Mark Bromley and Hugh Griffiths
Improving standards in the issuing and inspection of end-user certificates (EUCs) and related documents would significantly contribute to preventing the diversion of small arms and light weapons (SALW) to the illicit market. This would limit the chances of SALW reaching conflict zones or embargoed destinations. To download the Insights paper click here.

SIPRI Fact Sheet
Trends in international arms transfers, 2009
Paul Holtom, Mark Bromley, Pieter D. Wezeman and Siemon D. Wezeman
The SIPRI Arms Transfers Database now contains information on all international transfers of major conventional weapons from 1950 to the end of 2009. It is the only publicly available resource providing consistent data on international arms transfers for this length of time. This Fact Sheet describes the trends that are revealed by the new data. To download the Fact Sheet click here.

SIPRI Insights on Peace and Security no. 2010/2
China prepares for an ice-free Arctic
Linda Jakobson
The prospect of the Arctic being navigable during summer months as a result of climate change has impelled the Chinese Government to allocate more resources to research in the High North. Several Chinese academics have encouraged their government to be aware of the political, economic and military implications of shorter shipping routes and untapped energy resources. However, Chinese officials advocate cautious Arctic policies for fear of causing alarm and provoking countermeasures among the Arctic states. To download the Insights paper click here.

SIPRI Background Paper
Arms transfers to Europe and Central Asia
Paul Holtom
Military expenditure and arms imports in Europe and Central Asia have increased during the past decade. Military reform and modernization have been offered as justifications for the significant increase in military spending and arms procurement in Eastern Europe, but other factors such as unresolved border disputes, territorial claims and separatism also play a role.
To download the Background paper click here.

SIPRI Insights on Peace and Security no. 2010/1
Demilitarizing mining areas in the Democratic Republic of the Congo: the case of northern Katanga Province
Ruben de Koning
The illegal economic exploitation of artisanal mining areas by military forces is a persistent problem in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), even in areas such as northern Katanga Province that are in transition to peace. Many former rebels and militia have not demobilized or been properly integrated into new army structures, and the benefits they derive from mining serve as a disincentive to do so. The government seems to tacitly condone the practice. To download the Insights paper click here.

SIPRI Fact Sheet
Chronology of armaments, disarmament and international security 2009
Nenne Bodell
This chronology lists the significant events in 2009 related to armaments, disarmament and international security. In addition to the headline-grabbing events, such as the end of the conflict in Sri Lanka and North Korea's nuclear test, it also records the less publicized, but no less important, advances and setbacks in arms controls and international security. To download the Fact Sheet click here.

SIPRI Policy Paper no. 25
China's Expanding Role in Peacekeeping: Prospects and Policy Implications
Bates Gill and Chin-hao Huang
China has dramatically increased its participation in UN peace operations in recent years. This timely Policy Paper offers new insights into the development of China's engagement in multilateral peacekeeping and the factors and debates that underlie it. The report also examines what these new trends mean for multilateral peacekeeping and for China's major security partners. Finally, it makes policy-oriented recommendations on how China and the international community can build on this unique opportunity to strengthen multilateral peacekeeping and to firmly establish a new, more positive international role for China. To download the Policy Paper click here.