CNANW

The Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons | Le Réseau canadien pour l’abolition des armes nucléaires

CNANW Condemns Nuclear Threats; Calls for De-escalation and Total Nuclear Disarmament

August 5, 2025

Media Release

Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (CNANW) Condemns Nuclear Threats; Calls for De-escalation and Total Nuclear Disarmament.

Ottawa – August 4, 2025 –  On the eve of the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombings of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 6th and 9th 1945 that claimed more than 200,000 lives, a network of 18 prominent Canadian NGOs dedicated to the total elimination of nuclear weapons has condemned recent rhetoric and actions by Russia and the US concerning the possible use of nuclear weapons.

In response to threats by the US to impose stricter sanctions on Russia for failing to end its invasion of Ukraine, former Russian President, Dmitry Medvedev, now Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, reminded the US that Russia has significant nuclear strike capabilities. Russian President Putin, Foreign Minister Lavrov and others in the Kremlin have also invoked the spectre of nuclear war on multiple occasions, in particular, should a third party directly engage Russia in defence of Ukraine.

Last Friday, in response, US President Trump said “I ordered two nuclear submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions, based on the highly provocative statements of the Former President of Russia. Words are very important and can often lead to unintended consequences”.

On behalf of the Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, Chairperson, Earl Turcotte, condemned “this dangerous rhetoric and actions that will increase the already critical level of tension between and among nuclear powers”.

The CNANW believes that the open deployment of “nuclear submarines” by the US to strategic positions vis a vis Russia, will increase fear of a nuclear first strike – an option not ruled out by either nation.

The US and Russia possess approximately 90% of the global nuclear arsenal. The balance, by the U.K., France, China, India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea.

Scientific modeling has demonstrated that the detonation of even 3% of this total would kill millions immediately and in the weeks and months following. It would also eject enough dirt and smoke into earth’s atmosphere to plunge the planet into a nuclear winter for more than a decade, resulting in widespread famine that could wipe out a third of humanity. A wider nuclear exchange could end life on earth as we know it, if not completely.

The world has lived with the threat of nuclear annihilation for 80 years, yet all nine nuclear powers are engaged in a new nuclear arms race – expanding and ‘modernizing’ their arsenals and introducing new delivery systems that many consider virtually impossible to defeat.  The US and Russia have also recently lowered their respective thresholds for the use of nuclear weapons. Add to this the risk of cyber-attack and/or non-state actors acquiring nuclear capability.

The ‘Doomsday Clock’ established by atomic scientists in 1947, is at 89 seconds to midnight, closer to ‘Doomsday’ than at any point in its history.

“This is insanity”, said Turcotte. “We are one miscalculation, accident or deliberate act by a profoundly misguided leader away from nuclear Armageddon.

More than 100 nations have already declared themselves nuclear weapons-free zones. It’s past time for like-minded nations around the world to impel and, if necessary, to compel nuclear armed states to reverse the nuclear arms race and enter into legally binding agreements that will result in the total elimination of nuclear weapons and the establishment of an effective monitoring system to ensure compliance, indefinitely. We did it with chemical and biological weapons. We can and must do it with the ultimate weapon of mass destruction!”

The CNANW urges Canada and NATO to begin to play an international leadership role to this end, and to do so on an urgent basis, as though another nuclear event were imminent. It very well could be.

Ottawa, August 4, 2025

——————————————————————————————————

For additional information, contact Earl Turcotte, Chairperson of the CNANW, at: earl.turcotte[at]gmail.com or by telephone at 613-839-2777

 *CNANW Member Organizations

Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility

Canadian Federation of University Women

Canadian Peace Research Association

Canadian Pugwash Group

Canadian Voice of Women for Peace

Friends for Peacebuilding and Conflict Prevention

Group of 78

Hiroshima – Nagasaki Day Coalition

International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War Canada

Peace Train Canada

Project Ploughshares

Project Save the World

Religions for Peace Canada

Rideau Institute

Science for Peace

United Nations Association in Canada

Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom

World Federalist Movement Canada

Statement: “Nuclear Disarmament in Times of Unprecedented Risk”

November 22, 2024

 

Five Recommendations Arising From the Roundtable

On October 24, 2024, Canada’s four leading nuclear disarmament organizations—the Canadian Pugwash Group, the Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, Canadians for a Nuclear Weapons Convention, and Project Ploughshares—convened an expert Roundtable on “Nuclear Disarmament in Times of Unprecedented Risk.” This was held in response to rapidly escalating nuclear threats. The convening organizations share the profound conviction that Canada must urgently reassert its voice and leadership in the global disarmament arena.
 
The gravity of today’s nuclear threats, underscored by the heightened possibility of nuclear weapons’ use, demands that Canada act with bold urgency. In our Report, we call on the Government of Canada to reaffirm its role as a constructive middle power by embracing these recommendations. By doing so, Canada can strengthen its legacy of peacebuilding and advance the imperative of nuclear disarmament in times of unprecedented risk.  Read the report here: ND4 Report to GoC 2024

Submission to UN Summit of the Future

January 8, 2024

Submitted by CNANW as a contribution to:  Chapter II. International peace and security

Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons Steering Committee (CNANW-SC) welcomes the opportunity for civil society to make an important contribution to the upcoming UN Summit of the Future.

First, we strongly encourage the strengthening of support for the bedrock Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), and goals of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) and other legal restraints and obligations. But greater attention to the urgent work to eliminate nuclear weapons is required.

Second, CNANW-SC supports the nuclear disarmament proposals from civil society for the Summit of the Future  in the first round of civil society consultations facilitated by the Coalition for the UN we Need, and which are included in the Interim People’s Pact for the Future which includes the following proposals:

We also highlight the following proposals, which will reduce global instability: 

1)  The approval by all Nuclear Weapons States and their alliances of the policy of No-First-Use of nuclear weapons;

2)  The prioritizing of policies based on Common Security as the foundation for global governance. Restore and expand emphasis on war prevention and peaceful conflict resolution, and give priority to building the United Nations as envisaged by its Charter. Press for multilateral over unilateral responses to stave off, or hasten the repair of, breaches of the peace, to limit human suffering and environment degradation, and to thereby minimize costly military interventions.  Common security puts a premium on the machinery and diplomacy of international cooperation and favours the peaceful resolution of disputes, together with the equal right to security of all states;

3) Reliance on the International Court of Justice as a core legal instrument for the prevention of war;

4)  Sustainable earth stewardship will be enhanced by redirection of financial and human resources away from maintenance of dangerous weapons systems, including nuclear weapons modernization, and failed military doctrines, including nuclear deterrence.

We wish the planners of the UN Summit of the Future great success in the elaboration of the Zero Draft Report.

In pursuit of a more stable and sustainable world, free of nuclear weapons.

We remain available should you have any questions.

Most sincerely,

CNANW Co-Chairs Robin Collins and Dr. Sylvie Lemieux,
CNANW Steering Committee,
and:
Canadian Pugwash Group
Canadian Voice of Women for Peace (VOW)
Group of 78
Hiroshima Nagasaki Day Coalition (HNDC)
International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War Canada (IPPNWC)
Project Ploughshares
Religions for Peace Canada
Religions pour la Paix – Québec
Rideau Institute
Science for Peace

— December 2023 —




		

				

				

				

				

			
				Today’s Wars No Excuse to Abandon Disarmament			
		

				

					
			November 1, 2023		
				

		


Download statement in pdf


 


Published in The Hill Times, November 1, 2023


For the first time, the four leading organizations in Canada devoted to nuclear disarmament issues — Canadian Pugwash Group, Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, Canadians for a Nuclear Weapons Convention and Project Ploughshares — co-sponsored a single event on Oct. 19, 2023. This extraordinary Roundtable, “Revitalizing Nuclear Disarmament Afer the Ukraine War,” was convened at a moment of extreme danger to the world. This is the Roundtable’s abridged report to the Government of Canada.


Full Report, Canada’s Role in Nuclear Disarmament in a Multi-Polar World: After Ukraine Special Roundtable

		

				

				

				

				

			
				CNANW Appeal to Members of Canada’s Parliament to Support Canada attending as Observer to the TPNW			
		

				

					
			September 18, 2023		
				

		

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24 together with prolonged conflict and heightened rhetoric have contributed to fears of a widening of this war, and even to detonation of nuclear weapons by intention, through escalation or by accident.





Add to this global challenge the US and Russian withdrawal from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) in 2019, the US withdrawal from the nuclear agreement with Iran, ongoing skirmishes between India and Pakistan, modernization of nuclear weapons by all nuclear weapon states, and the possibility of cyber-attacks leading to a nuclear weapon event.





One opportunity now arises through a show of support by Canada for movement in a safer direction and towards eliminating nuclear weapons from the battlefield entirely, as part of our country’s longstanding disarmament legacy.





The First Meeting of States Parties of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) approaches at the end of June. Several countries that have shown little interest in signing the TPNW are still considering registering their solidarity in support of the intent of the treaty’s goal of nuclear weapon abolition. This includes NATO allies Norway and Germany, and aspiring NATO members Sweden and Finland. Canada can join this group.





For these reasons, we ask all Members of Parliament to now support an all-party call on the Canadian government to attend the TPNW inaugural meeting of states parties – as an observer.





Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons
May 31, 2022





RCAAN: Appel aux membres du Parlement canadien pour soutenir la participation du Canada en tant qu’observateur à la TIAN





L’invasion de l’Ukraine par la Russie le 24 février ainsi que la prolongation du conflit et l’intensification de la rhétorique ont contribué à faire craindre un élargissement de cette guerre, voire une détonation d’armes nucléaires par intention, par escalade ou par accident.





À ce défi mondial s’ajoutent le retrait des États-Unis et de la Russie du traité sur les forces nucléaires à portée intermédiaire (FNI) en 2019, le retrait des États-Unis de l’accord nucléaire avec l’Iran, les escarmouches en cours entre l’Inde et le Pakistan, la modernisation des armes nucléaires par tous les États dotés d’armes nucléaires et la possibilité de cyberattaques menant à un événement impliquant des armes nucléaires.





Dans le cadre de l’héritage de longue date de notre pays en matière de désarmement, une occasion se présente aujourd’hui d’aller dans une direction plus sûre et d’éliminer complètement les armes nucléaires du champ de bataille.





La première réunion des États parties au Traité sur l’interdiction des armes nucléaires (TIAN) approche à la fin du mois de juin. Plusieurs pays qui ont manifesté peu d’intérêt pour la signature du TIAN envisagent encore d’enregistrer leur solidarité pour soutenir l’objectif du traité, à savoir l’abolition des armes nucléaires. Il s’agit notamment des alliés de l’OTAN, la Norvège et l’Allemagne, et des pays aspirant à devenir membres de l’OTAN, la Suède et la Finlande. Le Canada peut se joindre à ce groupe.





Pour ces raisons, nous demandons à tous les membres du Parlement de soutenir l’appel lancé par tous les partis au gouvernement canadien pour qu’il assiste à la réunion inaugurale des États parties au TIAN – en tant qu’observateur.





 





Le Réseau canadien pour l’abolition des armes nucléaires
31 mai 2022

		

				

				

				

				

			
				Reducing the Nuclear Weapons Risks in the Ukraine Conflict			
		

				

					
			September 18, 2023		
				

		

Report on November 29, 2022 Special Meeting of CNANW





In a recent statement, NATO’s Secretary General, a former social-democratic Norwegian Prime Minster, Mr. Jens Stoltenberg said that the alliance will continue to support Ukraine for “as long as it takes”. He added: “We will not back down.” Prominent columnists have challenged the very idea that a ceasefire in the Ukraine crisis is possible or have even suggested that it might lengthen the war on Russian President Putin’s terms. Some press for a “fight to victory” by Kyiv, given recent gains on the battlefield. Sometimes the nuclear weapons threat is seen as blackmail, a bluff, or a risk worth ignoring.





How then can Canada constructively contribute to peace?





Panelists at the CNANW discussion in late November were asked to consider opportunities for reducing the nuclear weapon threat, and prospects for peace. All acknowledged the dire situation in Ukraine following the illegal Russian invasion.





English: Report-on-Nov-29-Special-Meeting-of-CNANW_finalDownload





Français: RAPPORT-Réunion-spéciale-du-CNANW_Nov2022Download





The Hill Times: CollinsLemieux_UkrainePeaceJan0923_HTDownload






		

				

				

				

				

			
				Canadians call on NATO:  Reduce Nuclear Risks			
		

				

					
			September 18, 2023		
				

		

Les Canadien.ne.s demandent à l’OTAN de Réduire les Risques Nucléaires





In June 2022, NATO will conclude a review of its principal “Strategic Concept” policy. Backed by strong science-based information, we urge the Canadian Government to lessen the risk of nuclear weapon use, and emphasize diplomacy in resolving conflicts.





En juin 2022, l’OTAN conclura la révision de sa politique principale relative au “concept stratégique”. Sur la base d’informations scientifiques solides, nous demandons instamment au gouvernement canadien de réduire le risque d’utilisation de l’arme nucléaire et de privilégier la diplomatie pour résoudre les conflits.





20220414-CdnsCall2NATO-ENDownload





20220414-CdnsCal2NATO-FRDownload

		

				

				

				

				

			
				Petition to the Government of Canada:  Attend, as an observer, the First Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons			
		

				

					
			September 18, 2023		
				

		

Pétition au gouvernement du Canada: Assister, en tant qu’observateur, à la première réunion des États parties au Traité sur l’interdiction des armes nucléaires





[Note that a paper version of this petition has collected the requisite 25 signatures.]





[Notez qu’une version papier de cette pétition a recueilli les 25 signatures requises.]





We the undersigned citizens and residents of Canada, profoundly concerned about the increasing risk to humanity posed by nuclear weapons and mindful of the leadership role Canada has historically played on arms control, call upon Canada to Join our allies, Germany and Norway, in attending the First Meeting of States Parties to the TPNW as an observer.





Nous, soussigné.e.s, citoyen.ne.s et résident.e.s du Canada, profondément préoccupé.e.s par le risque croissant que représentent les armes nucléaires pour l’humanité et conscient.e.s du rôle de leader que le Canada a historiquement joué en matière de contrôle des armements, appelons le Canada à se joindre à nos alliés, l’Allemagne et la Norvège, pour assister à la première réunion des États parties à la TIAN en tant qu’observateur.





Petition-Canadas-attendance-at-the-First-Meeting-of-States-Parties-to-the-TPNWDownload





CNANW-Petition-Canadas-attendance-at-the-First-Meeting-of-States-Parties-to-the-TPNW-French-1Download






		

				

				

				

				

			
				“NWC Reset: Frameworks for a nuclear-weapon-free world”			
		

				

					
			September 18, 2023		
				

		

Brief comments at the NPT side panels
(by Robin Collins, Co-chair, Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons) 
August 9, 2022 by Zoom





“Don’t let your reticence with one approach for the sake of alliance solidarity be the excuse of convenience that you use to justify not proceeding with another.“





A colleague in Canada recently asked us to imagine that day when “You wake up to the news that the last remaining warhead has been dismantled. The era of nuclear weapons is over.”





We know he wasn’t being overly optimistic, because he then offered a list of many of the hard cases and sticky problems that obstruct us: the nuclear sharing policies of NATO; North Korea; Iran; the nuclear weapons states outside the NPT, and all those NPT obligations and expectations that to a large extent are unfulfilled or are openly violated. 





He was urging us to be realists and to consider the complementarity of options.





The point is that the specific vehicle must defer to the desire and commitment by states to accomplish the abolition. What will inspire the political will to end the existential threat hanging over us all? What are the unnecessary obstacles?





As nuclear weapon abolitionists we can make the project of abolition and the replacement security framework coherent and as palatable as possible so that when the road is cleared, or clearer, things can as easily as possible fall into place. Which package, or options picked, is far less important. What counts is that the goal is pursued in earnest.





As Jackie Cabasso, one of our Abolition 2000 working group members said earlier at the NPT as an NGO representative — considering the ignoring of NPT commitments from 1995, 2000 and 2010, it’s time to refocus our attention on the nuclear-armed states. A time-bound target for abolition is overdue. Jackie said: we “call on the nuclear-armed and nuclear sharing states to commit to a timeframe of no later than 2030 for the adoption of a framework, package of agreements or comprehensive nuclear weapons convention, and no later than 2045 for full implementation”.





The Nuclear Weapon Convention Reset paper that our Abolition 2000 working group constructed, has this approach, which is to highlight the three primary options that are under consideration: Then it is up to the official and unofficial Nuclear Weapon States, NATO members and NATO umbrella states to proceed.





Proceed swiftly. 





Canada, my country, has no nuclear weapons although was involved in the nuclear bomb project from the early days, and is a member of NATO, along with three nuclear-armed states, five others with nuclear-sharing arrangements[i] and seven others that participate in Support of Nuclear Operations With Conventional Air Tactics (known as SNOWCAT).[ii] 





We are fully aware of the pressures on NATO members towards their being compliant and in solidarity with other NATO members, to go along with the prevailing winds – and therefore also the reluctance to push back or be that nuclear nag (once again). This is still the case, particularly in the most delicate of moments, by which I mean the current context of the Russian illegal invasion of Ukraine: the sabre-rattling rhetoric, the references to actual use of nuclear weapons. Not to mention the daily killing and dying. But just as the New START talks need to continue, now more than ever, so is this a good time for states to speed up, not slow down, progress on abolition.





Countries like Canada may have been involved at the Stockholm Initiative, a diplomatic forum that proposes risk reduction measures and a “stepping stones approach” to nuclear disarmament; or attended The Vienna Conference on the Humanitarian Impact of Nuclear Weapons this last June, but then avoided the TPNW like the plague, despite pressure from disarmament activists and many parliamentarians.





We are here pragmatically advocating for nuclear weapon states and NATO members to consider the options for disarmament that you can stomach. If not the TPNW with protocols, then a nuclear weapons convention or a framework of instruments. Don’t let your reticence with one approach for the sake of alliance solidarity be the excuse of convenience that you use to justify not proceeding with another. 





Some leader or leaders need to step up within NATO to break the silence and expose the illusory consensus, and begin the renewal of the abolition project, because, as the UN Secretary-General said, “Luck is no strategy!”





Our “Nuclear Weapons Convention Reset: Frameworks for a nuclear-weapon-free world” message, therefore, highlights this complementarity of three possibilities towards a time-bound abolition target, for de-escalation of the unhelpful rhetoric, for urgent risk reduction measures, and ultimately for a sustainable peace and common security wherein nuclear threats and nuclear weapons no longer exist. 





Thank you for your time.










[i] Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey





[ii] Czech Republic, Denmark, Greece, Hungary, Norway, Poland and Romania


		

				

				

				

				

			
				END ALL NUCLEAR WEAPON THREATS			
		

				

					
			September 18, 2023		
				

		






Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons statement
on Ukraine and nuclear weapon threats
METTRE FIN À TOUTES LES MENACES D’ARMES NUCLÉAIRES, 
en français ci-dessous





CNANW condemns the raised readiness level of the Russian Federation’s strategic nuclear forces to what was described as a “special regime of combat duty.” This followed Russian President Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine and was a clear warning to NATO not to intervene in the war. Heightened rhetoric by Putin also included a threat that any interference by other states in Ukraine would result in consequences “such as you have never seen in your entire history.”





Belarus, Russia’s ally in the conflict, has stated that it will abandon its status as a non-nuclear weapon state and will now consider hosting Russian nuclear missiles. 





While the United States indicated it was not responding in-kind and therefore not raising the alert status of its own nuclear arsenal, NATO made clear that any Russian aggression beyond Ukraine into the territory of an alliance member would provoke an immediate response. The risk of escalation to a regional war, including nuclear war, is real and concerning. 





Unfortunately, in late March, US President Biden stepped away from his own previously stated support for a sole purpose (no first use) policy for the American nuclear arsenal. Instead, its “fundamental” role will be to deter nuclear attacks. This ambiguity leaves open options to use nuclear weapons for wider purposes. 





President Putin’s statement is the first public threat of threatened nuclear weapon use during an ongoing military conflict in recent memory. The rise in global risk is unacceptable. The grave humanitarian consequences of even a small nuclear exchange provide no legal, ethical or militarily useful justification for the use or threatened use of nuclear weapons.





Therefore, CNANW calls on the Canadian government to make crystal clear Canada’s long-held opposition to nuclear weapons threats or use, and to contribute to the reduction of rhetoric that could lead to escalation of the current conflict in Ukraine. 





April 28, 2022





METTRE FIN À TOUTES LES MENACES D’ARMES NUCLÉAIRES
Déclaration du Réseau Canadien pour l’Abolition des Armes Nucléaires sur l’Ukraine et les menaces liées aux armes nucléaires





Le RCAAN condamne l’augmentation du niveau de préparation des forces nucléaires stratégiques de la Fédération de Russie à ce qui a été décrit comme un “régime spécial de service de combat”. Cette décision fait suite à l’invasion illégale de l’Ukraine par le président russe Poutine et constitue un avertissement clair à l’OTAN de ne pas intervenir dans cette guerre. Poutine a également menacé, dans sa rhétorique, que toute ingérence d’autres États en Ukraine aurait des conséquences “telles que vous n’en avez jamais vues dans toute votre histoire”.





Le Belarus, allié de la Russie dans le conflit, a déclaré qu’il abandonnerait son statut d’État non doté d’armes nucléaires et envisagerait désormais d’accueillir des missiles nucléaires russes.





Si les États-Unis ont indiqué qu’ils ne répondaient pas en nature et ne relevaient donc pas le niveau d’alerte de leur propre arsenal nucléaire, l’OTAN a clairement indiqué que toute agression russe au-delà de l’Ukraine sur le territoire d’un membre de l’alliance provoquerait une réponse immédiate. Le risque d’escalade vers une guerre régionale, y compris une guerre nucléaire, est réel et préoccupant.





Malheureusement, à la fin du mois de mars, le président américain Biden s’est éloigné de son soutien, précédemment déclaré, à une politique de l’arsenal nucléaire américain à but unique (pas de première utilisation). Au lieu de cela, son rôle “fondamental” sera de dissuader les attaques nucléaires. Cette ambiguïté laisse ouverte la possibilité d’utiliser les armes nucléaires à des fins plus larges.





De mémoire récente, la déclaration du président Poutine est la première menace publique d’utilisation d’une arme nucléaire pendant un conflit militaire. L’augmentation du risque mondial est inacceptable. Les graves conséquences humanitaires d’un échange nucléaire, même minime, ne fournissent aucune justification légale, éthique ou militairement utile pour l’utilisation ou la menace d’utilisation d’armes nucléaires.





Par conséquent, le RCAAN demande au gouvernement canadien d’exprimer clairement l’opposition de longue date du Canada aux menaces ou à l’utilisation d’armes nucléaires, et de contribuer à la réduction de la rhétorique qui pourrait mener à une escalade du conflit actuel en Ukraine.





28 avril 2022






		

				

				

					
		
				

				

						

				

				

		

				

				

					
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