Announcement: Douglas Roche, O.C. Named 2025 Winner of CLND Award for Distinguished Achievement in Nuclear Disarmament

Douglas Roche, O.C. Named 2025 Winner of CLND Award for
Distinguished Achievement in Nuclear Disarmament:

Presentation and Lecture in Ottawa on October 23, 202

July 17, 2025

Douglas Roche, O.C. will receive the Canadian Leadership for Nuclear Disarmament (CLND) 2025 Distinguished Achievement Award. He has devoted himself over many decades to the vital cause of nuclear disarmament and, ultimately, the global abolition of nuclear weapons. CLND is a civil society initiative sponsored by the Canadian Pugwash Group. It is endorsed by more than 1,000 recipients of the Order of Canada who have called for Canada to work for comprehensive negotiations for the elimination of nuclear weapons.

“We are immensely proud to give this year’s Award to Douglas Roche, honouring his unwavering and inspiring leadership, for more than 50 years, resolutely focused on ridding the world of its catastrophically deadly arsenal of nuclear weapons,” said Alex Neve O.C., CLND Chairperson. “There is no one who has been so steadfast, brought so many others to this vital campaign, and shown all Canadians the moral clarity and pragmatic necessity of the cause. Doug Roche embodies the very epitome of the essence and finest qualities of leadership. And he has ardently and eloquently shown us all just what is at stake: our very survival.”

Douglas Roche has had the rare distinction of serving in the three roles of a Canadian Member of Parliament, Ambassador for Disarmament and Senator. He received appointments from two prime ministers of different parties: Brian Mulroney appointed him ambassador and Jean Chretien named him a senator. In all of those roles he has been a clarion voice for peace, justice and human rights, and has been untiring in his determined effort, in particular, to advance nuclear disarmament.

Roche, who is also a former Visiting Professor at the University of Alberta, has been a lifelong educator, informing Canadians of the risks posed by nuclear weapons and policy options to lessen those risks. He has written 25 books, and multiple articles and speeches. To strengthen disarmament education, he has organized many Parliamentary breakfasts, civil society meetings, roundtables, seminars, and briefings. He holds nine honorary doctorates and is an Officer of the Order of Canada.

Roche has also been integral to the creation of a wide range of effective nuclear disarmament advocacy groups. He was founding Chairperson of  Parliamentarians for Global Action, the Middle Powers Initiative, and the Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons. He was the first international president of Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament.

“For his integrity, knowledge, dedication and unflagging hard work, Douglas Roche commands an exceptional – in fact unrivalled – level and degree of respect across Canada and globally, including from governments, UN officials, civil society leaders, academics, and peace and human rights activists,” said Neve. “At the age of 96, the determination and energy he continues to bring to this crucial campaign, sets a model that we all must aspire to follow.”

The Award will be presented at 4 PM on Thursday, October 23, 2025 and followed by Douglas Roche’s lecture, on “Creative Dissent: A Politician’s Struggle for Peace.” This public event is sponsored by CLND and the Centre for International Policy Studies (CIPS) at the University of Ottawa, in Room 4007 of the Faculty of Social Sciences Building, 120 University Private, Ottawa. The lecture will be followed by a reception and will conclude at 6 pm.

Previous recipients of the CNWC/CLND Achievement Award are:

2011 Murray Thomson

2012 Bev Tollefson Delong

2013 Fergus Watt

2014 Adele Buckley

2015 Paul Dewar

2016 Peggy Mason

2017 Metta Spencer

2018 Debbie Grisdale

2019 Dr. Mary-Wynne Ashford and Dr. Jonathan Down

2021 Dr. Jennifer Allen Simons

2022 Paul Meyer

2023 Tariq Rauf

2024 Ernie Regehr

Contact:    Elaine Hynes

CLND Secretariat

clnd@pugwashgroup.ca

CLND May 20, 2025 letter to the Prime Minister

The Right Honourable Mark Carney, PC, OC
Prime Minister of Canada

May 20, 2025

Dear Prime Minister,

As you assume the weighty responsibilities of your office, Canadian Leadership for Nuclear Disarmament (CLND) wishes to bring to your attention several issues of grave import for national and international security. CLND, a project of the Canadian Pugwash Group, is supported by over 1000 Order of Canada recipients from all walks of life and from across the country and has consistently advocated for making progress on nuclear disarmament and for Canada to exercise leadership internationally on issues related to nuclear disarmament.

It is no exaggeration to say that we are experiencing an especially challenging and dangerous period in international relations with core norms regarding the sanctity of borders and restraint in nuclear weapons policies and practise being abandoned. The metaphoric “Doomsday Clock” of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, which tracks existential threats to humanity, is now set at 89 seconds to midnight the closest to disaster it has been since the dawn of the atomic era.

Despite the very real risks to global security evident today, we believe that opportunities for progress remain possible and that Canada can make a significant contribution to strengthening the rules-based international security order.  Following are four specific steps that we suggest your government could undertake.  They would constitute a positive agenda of action to advance long-standing Canadian objectives for a world without nuclear weapons.

Completion by Russia and the US of a follow-on accord to the New START arms reduction treaty

Both President Trump and President Putin have spoken positively for nuclear disarmament. There are current indications that Moscow and Washington may resume their long suspended strategic dialogue. A principal goal of that dialogue should be the negotiation of a successor accord to the New START treaty which is slated to expire in February 2026. In the absence of a follow-up to New START there would be no longer any legally binding constraint on the nuclear arsenals of these two powers (which still account for approximately 90% of the world’s nuclear weapons).

A renewal of mutual restraints by the two nuclear superpowers would be stabilising not only for their bilateral strategic relations but also for the global nuclear order. The resumption of negotiations cannot be taken for granted, however. It will be necessary for allies and partners of the United States to speak out in favour of this negotiation being expedited and brought to a productive conclusion within the remaining timeframe.

Advocate for the adoption of a No First Use (NFU) policy on nuclear weapons

All states parties to the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) have committed to the reduction of the saliency of nuclear weapons in their respective policies and doctrines. Unfortunately, in recent years a reverse trend is evident amongst many nuclear-armed-states with an expansion of the scenarios and circumstances in which nuclear weapon use would be contemplated. Adoption of a No First Use (or “sole purpose”) policy would strictly restrict any use of nuclear weapons to retaliation if it was attacked with nuclear weapons.   At present only China and India amongst the nine nuclear-armed-states have espoused No First Use. Canada could advocate for its nuclear allies to adopt this stance. This change in declaratory policy would help raise the “threshold” for nuclear weapon use and facilitate further progress in meeting universal and Alliance objectives in nuclear disarmament.

Press for the initiation of negotiations on a Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty (FMCT)

Canada has long exercised leadership with respect to a treaty that would ban the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons. Although the conclusion of such a treaty has been for years an agreed aim of the international community and figures as a priority goal of the NPT States Parties, the dismal reality is not a single day of negotiation of such a treaty has occurred.

Part of the reason for this failure resides in states confining the negotiation of an FMCT to the 65-nation Conference on Disarmament in Geneva which in theory is the UN’s sole forum for the negotiation of multilateral arms control and disarmament agreements. The Conference on Disarmament operates under an extreme version of the consensus principle which provides each of its member states a de facto veto over all decisions. Canada has tried via chairing several UN authorized expert groups to unblock this logjam, without success. It is overdue for concerned states to liberate the FMCT negotiations from the straitjacket of the Conference on Disarmament and seek the commencement of negotiations in the UN General Assembly, where there is no veto. Given the investment Canada has made over decades in an FMCT it is incumbent for us to champion a diplomatic process that can jump start negotiations.

Help to repair the schism within the NPT by engaging with TPNW parties

The global nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament regime embodied in the NPT is under great stress. The last two of its quinquennial review conferences (2015 and 2022) have failed to agree an outcome document. A key fissure has opened up around the issue of how best to advance towards nuclear disarmament. Article VI of the NPT stipulates that the nuclear weapon states under the treaty have an obligation to achieve nuclear disarmament. Regrettably, movement in recent years has been away from nuclear disarmament and towards expansion and modernization of nuclear weapons.

Frustration over this state of affairs prompted non-nuclear weapon state members of the NPT to negotiate in 2017 and adopt the Treaty on the Prohibition on Nuclear Weapons (TPNW). This treaty codifies a higher standard of nuclear disarmament than that contained in the NPT. To date the TPNW has 73 state parties and 94 signatories and entered into force in January 2021.

Influenced by their nuclear-armed allies, Canada and other NATO members have refused to endorse the TPNW. However, this has not prevented several of our allies from attending annual meetings of TPNW state parties as observers. Such attendance is without prejudice to Canada’s position regarding signing on to the TPNW but provides a tangible sign of respect towards adherents of the TPNW and an opportunity to explore how best to reconcile respective positions with a view to the common goal of strengthening the NPT. We would encourage the Canadian Government to participate in the first Review Conference of TPNW state parties in late 2026 as an observer in order to carry on the constructive and bridge-building role that has characterized Canada’s nuclear disarmament diplomacy for so many years.

At this time of new beginnings for the government, the eminent Canadians represented by Canadian Leadership for Nuclear Disarmament, respectfully ask that due consideration is given to taking up the above recommendations and position Canada once again to be a leader in the on-going struggle to keep the nuclear demons at bay and reinforce the peaceful regime for global nuclear governance.

We look forward to receiving your considered response to these proposals and stand ready to meet and otherwise engage with you or your appointed representatives on this subject matter at your earliest convenience.

Sincerely,

Alex Neve, OC, LLD (Hon.), LLM
Chair
Steering Committee
Canadian Leadership for Nuclear Disarmament

cc: The Honourable Anita Anand, Minister of Foreign Affairs
cc: The Honourable David McGuinty, Minister of National Defence

Read the letter here as pdf file: May 20, 2025 CLND letter to PM Carney

“Canadians for a Nuclear Weapons Convention” Announces Name Change to “Canadian Leadership for Nuclear Disarmament”

May 8, 2025 – Canadians for a Nuclear Weapons Convention (CNWC) is pleased to announce its new name: Canadian Leadership for Nuclear Disarmament (CLND). This change is to enable the organization’s name to better describe the breadth of the work we have done and will continue to do.

As a project of the Canadian Pugwash Group, the organization continues to unite over 1,000 recipients of the Order of Canada in advocating for global nuclear disarmament. CLND remains dedicated to its core objective:

“To call on all member states of the United Nations – including Canada – to endorse, and begin negotiations for, a Nuclear Weapons Convention.”

CLND recognizes that the pursuit of a comprehensive convention requires attention to the full spectrum of nuclear disarmament issues.

The name change explicitly acknowledges the endorsement of nuclear disarmament by a large group of leading Canadians who are recipients of the Order of Canada, and also that CLND urges Canada to take on a genuine leadership role in nuclear disarmament diplomacy broadly and in preparatory work towards a nuclear weapons convention.

“This updated name better represents our ongoing commitment to addressing the full spectrum of nuclear disarmament issues and conveys what we expect from our government in rising to that urgent global challenge,” said Alex Neve, the Chair of the Steering Committee of CLND. “While our mission remains the same, our renewed identity reflects the leadership that is needed, from government and from civil society, in pushing for concrete action.”

CLND aims to strengthen Canada’s role in fostering a world free of nuclear weapons through advocacy, policy recommendations, and public engagement. The organization will continue to work closely with policymakers, civil society, and international partners to advance diplomatic solutions and promote Canada’s active participation in nuclear disarmament negotiations.

For more information, please contact:

Alex Neve, Steering Committee Chair
Canadian Leadership for Nuclear Disarmament
Email: CLND@pugwashgroup.ca

Website: https://pugwashgroup.ca/clnd/

Media Releases:

CLND Name Change Press Release – EN

CLND Name Change Press Release – FR