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“For half a century, ACA has been providing the world … with advocacy, analysis, and awareness on some of the most critical topics of international peace and security, including on how to achieve our common, shared goal of a world free of nuclear weapons.”

– Izumi Nakamitsu
UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs
June 2, 2022
  • UN Enhances Iran Sanctions
    July 2, 2010

    After a months-long push by the United States and its allies to expand penalties against Iran over its nuclear program, the UN Security Council imposed a fourth round of sanctions on Tehran June 9. Resolution 1929 includes a range of mandatory restrictions aimed primarily at persons and entities involved in Iran’s nuclear and missile programs, but it also calls for additional measures against financial, shipping, and other activities that may contribute to Iran’s proliferation.

  • Congress Delays Iran Sanctions
    June 4, 2010

    In a nod to long-standing Obama administration requests, Congress will delay finalizing sanctions legislation on Iran while the UN Security Council considers its own draft sanctions resolution, the two lead sponsors of the legislation said in a May 25 press release. “[W]ith the progress in negotiations at the Security Council, we believe that our overriding goal of preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapons capability is best served by providing a limited amount of time for those efforts—and expected follow-on action by the EU [European Union] at its mid-June summit—to reach a successful conclusion before we send our bill to the President,” said the statement by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman (D-Calif.) and Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.).

  • Bill on Iran Gasoline Sanctions Nears Approval
    May 5, 2010

    Congress began the final steps in April to prepare new U.S. legislation sanctioning foreign companies that provide gasoline to Iran.

    The House of Representatives appointed conferees April 22 to a committee that must reconcile the versions of the legislation adopted by the House in December and the Senate in January to create a final bill for President Barack Obama to sign. The Senate appointed its conferees March 11.

  • Putin Predicts Summer Start for Iranian Reactor
    March 31, 2010

    In a statement that triggered a public dispute with the United States, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said last month Russia would help Iran’s first nuclear power plant begin operations this summer. The March 18 announcement, made during a Russian nuclear industry conference, coincided with a visit to Russia by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who criticized the move.

  • Outreach to North Korea Continues
    March 4, 2010

    High-level UN and Chinese envoys met with key North Korean leaders in early February to discuss the prospects for resuming multilateral talks on that country’s nuclear weapons program.

    Despite Pyongyang’s willingness to continue discussions on the possibility of returning to negotiations it abandoned last year, it appears to be sending mixed messages to the international community. Those six-party talks involved the two Koreas, China, Japan, Russia, and the United States.

  • Senate Targets Iran’s Oil Suppliers
    March 3, 2010

    The Senate approved a bill Jan. 28 that would increase pressure on Iran by levying sanctions on firms that export gasoline and refinery equipment to that country.

    The Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act, sponsored by Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.), amends the 1996 Iran Sanctions Act, which targeted firms investing in Iran’s energy sector. The House of Representatives passed an Iran sanctions bill in December.

  • House Adopts Iran Oil Sanctions
    January 13, 2010

    The House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly Dec. 15 to penalize companies that provide refined petroleum to Iran, advancing congressional efforts to strengthen sanctions against Tehran.

    The Senate is considering similar measures in more expansive sanctions legislation approved by the Senate Banking Committee in October. House and Senate committee leaders indicated in April that they would delay moving the legislation forward to allow the Obama administration to pursue diplomatic engagement with Iran.

  • Using Stronger Sanctions to Increase Negotiating Leverage With Iran
    December 4, 2009

    Six days after his inauguration, President Barack Obama declared that “if countries like Iran are willing to unclench their fist, they will find an extended hand from us.” Over the 10 months since then, the Obama administration has followed up on the January 26 declaration with numerous friendly gestures to the Iranian regime.

    The administration was right to offer incentives to and enter into dialogue with the Iranian leadership. Unfortunately, the Iranian regime has responded by continuing its aggressive and illegal behavior. The Obama administration should increase U.S. negotiating leverage over Iran by imposing crippling sanctions on Iran, beginning January 1, until Iran verifiably complies with its international obligations.

     

  • Iran and the Problem of Tactical Myopia
    December 4, 2009

    It seems that every conversation about Iran is a conversation about sanctions. Even in the midst of negotiations, the talk is as likely to be about the sanctions that might follow as it is about the negotiation itself. This is an odd and unfortunate state of affairs.

    Although sanctions can be an effective policy instrument, they are only that: an instrument or tactic for achieving a goal. Given their track record, new sanctions are hardly the tactic one would rush to as a promising choice. More importantly, by narrowly focusing on a tactic rather than the strategic objective, there is the risk that policymakers will produce the very thing they seek to prevent: an Iran with nuclear weapons.

     

  • UN Adds to North Korea Sanctions List
    September 4, 2009

    In a key step aimed at implementing a June sanctions resolution against North Korea, the UN Security Council blacklisted 10 North Korean organizations and individuals connected to Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile programs July 16. Security Council Resolution 1874, passed June 12, directed council members to take steps toward identifying North Korean entities and persons that would be subject to the financial restrictions, asset freezes, and travel restrictions outlined in the resolution. (See ACT, July/August 2009.) The council adopted that measure in response to North Korea’s May 25 nuclear test, building on a 2006 sanctions resolution adopted in response to Pyongyang’s first nuclear test. (Continue)

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