Stop the Surge
The 2020 Vision board has adopted a resolution opposing the escalation in Iraq.
Global Security
2020 Vision has long been a leader in opposition to new nuclear weapons. We also opposed the invasion of Iraq, and have opposed any threat of military action against Iran. We believe that world security is best enhanced by curtailing the spread of nuclear weapons, adhering to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which calls on the world's nuclear states to dramatically reduce their nuclear stockpiles with an eventual goal of completely abandoning nuclear weapons, and enhanced international diplomacy.
Over the past few years, we have worked in a variety of areas. We successfully opposed the "Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrator," or Nuclear Bunker Buster. Together with a wide swath of organizations, we successfully opposed the nomination of John Bolton to be the US Ambassador to the UN. We have organized against the war in Iraq, and supported bipartisan bills in Congress to end the war. And we have worked toward enhancing security by locking down and getting rid of so-called "loose nukes," weapons grade materials leftover from the Cold War, especially in the former Soviet Union.
Our current priorities for this year include opposition to "Complex 2030," a proposed collection of plants for producing new nuclear weapons. We believe that this money can do more to enhance our security by researching alternative fuels that will decrease our exposure to the destabilizing effects of oil.
We will also continue working on an end to the war in Iraq, and on preventing a new war in Iran. We believe that we must build a more stable Persian Gulf region, and that threatening the invasion of even more countries is a dangerous and doomed approach.
Events
What's Happening
Bipartisan Opposition to Troop Escalation
A bipartisan group of senators announced a formal resolution of opposition on January 17 to President Bush's buildup of troops in Iraq, calling for more diplomacy, international cooperation and an "appropriately expedited" transfer of military responsibilities to Iraqi security forces.
Learn More About the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT)
The CTBT is an international accord first drafted in 1996 that "prohibits every kind of nuclear explosion whatever its purpose." By prohibiting testing, the CTBT restricts a fundamental requirement for developing and using nuclear weapons. While the United States is one of 180 countries to date to have signed the treaty, we have yet to ratify; the Senate refused in 1999. Senate ratification of the CTBT would not only lead us closer to President Obama’s goal of a nuclear weapons free world in this lifetime, but would also go a long way in helping the U.S. to restore both its leadership role in arms control and non-proliferation as well as the moral standing that has suffered over the last decade.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Rejects Escalation
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee passed a nonbinding resolution on January 24 opposing a troop surge in Iraq, rebuffing the key element of President Bush's new strategy to end the 46-month-old war, which has claimed the lives of more than 3,000 U.S. service members. It is, however, troubling that this passed with only one Republican vote. More work will be needed to bring the Senate as a whole along.