CNANW

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

Dr. Arnd Jurgensen succeeds Earl Turcotte as Chairperson of the Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons

July 8, 2026

The Steering Committee of the Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (CNANW) is pleased to announce that Dr. Arnd Jurgensen has succeeded Earl Turcotte as Chairperson of the CNANW, as of  mid-April 2026.

Dr. Jurgensen completed a B.A. at New York University and an M.A. and PhD at the University of Toronto. He has written on a wide range of topics related to international affairs and has lectured in the Department of Political Science of the University of Toronto since 2003. Since 2020, Dr. Jurgensen has chaired the Nuclear Weapons Group and been a member of the Board of Directors of Science for Peace, one of 18 member NGOs of the CNANW. He has also served with distinction as a member of the Steering Committee of the CNANW for the past two years.

Upon accepting his new appointment, Dr. Jurgensen said: “The risk of a potentially catastrophic nuclear event seems to increase by the day! I am honoured to accept the responsibilities of Chairperson of the CNANW and pledge to do my best to advance our shared goal, the total elimination of nuclear weapons”.

Outgoing Chairperson Earl Turcotte, who remains a member of the Canadian Pugwash Group and the Group of 78, will continue to advocate in support of nuclear disarmament.

For additional information and to contact Dr. Arnd Jurgensen see the contact page on the CNANW website at www.cnanw.ca

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 —




		

				

				

				

				

			
				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






		

				

				

				

				

			
				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






		

				

				

				

				

			
				CNANW endorses Cdn Pugwash Group submission to UN Human Rights Committee re nuclear deterrence			
		

				

					
			September 18, 2023		
				

		

Regarding: Canada’s support for Nuclear Deterrence and the Right to Life
Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

Submission by the Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (CNANW)





April 30, 2021
United Nations Human Rights Committee
Dear Human Rights Committee Members,





The Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (CNANW) offers as our submission to the Periodic Review of Canada our endorsement of the statement submitted by Canadian Pugwash Group on April 27, 2021. Our statement follows, attached.





On behalf of CNANW,





Robin Collins and Dr. Sylvie Lemieux 
(Co-Chairpersons of CNANW)





Human-Rights-Ctte-CNANWSubmApr302021Download





Note: This effort was initiated by Alyn Ware and Basel Peace Office, among others.

		

				

				

				

				

			
				RCAAN Lettre: TIAN – Le Canada peut se joindre à la Norvège et assister à la première réunion			
		

				

					
			September 18, 2023		
				

		

28 octobre 2021
TIAN – Le Canada peut se joindre à la Norvège et assister à la première réunion





Cher Monsieur le Premier Ministre Trudeau, Madame la Ministre des Affaires étrangères et Madame la Ministre de la Défense,





Ce mois-ci, le gouvernement norvégien a annoncé qu’il participerait à la première réunion des États parties au Traité sur l’interdiction des armes nucléaires (1REP- TIAN) à Vienne (22-24 mars 2022) en tant qu’observateur. C’est une bonne nouvelle et une indication qu’au sein de l’OTAN, les États en faveur de l’abolition des armes nucléaires peuvent travailler ensemble vers cet objectif, qu’ils soient ou non signataires du TPNW. Cet engagement au dialogue est un signal particulièrement important pour le nouveau gouvernement du Canada dans la perspective de la dixième Conférence d’examen du Traité sur la non-prolifération des armes nucléaires (TNP) en janvier 2022.





Un récent sondage Nanos indique que 80 % des Canadiens appuient l’élimination des armes nucléaires; 74 % croient que le Canada devrait adhérer au nouveau Traité sur l’interdiction des armes nucléaires, même s’il y a des pressions de la part des États-Unis pour rester à l’écart.





Le Réseau canadien pour l’abolition des armes nucléaires (RCAAN) encourage le Canada à s’engager également, comme la Norvège l’a fait, à assister à la réunion des États parties au TIAN en tant qu’observateur. Notre gouvernement peut faire une déclaration rapide et claire à cet effet et encourager d’autres membres de l’OTAN à y participer également. Le RCAAN appuie l’adhésion du Canada au Traité sur l’interdiction des armes nucléaires ou à une nouvelle convention globale sur les armes nucléaires qui atteindra le même objectif déclaré : l’élimination totale des armes nucléaires.





Le Canada est en mesure de signer et de ratifier le TIAN alors qu’il est membre de l’OTAN, à condition que notre gouvernement dissocie le Canada de la doctrine de dissuasion nucléaire existante de l’OTAN. Comme l’a recommandé à l’unanimité le Comité permanent de la défense nationale de la Chambre des communes dans son rapport de 2018, le Canada peut assumer « un rôle de chef de file au sein de l’OTAN en commençant le travail nécessaire pour atteindre l’objectif de l’OTAN de « créer les conditions d’un monde exempt d’armes nucléaires ». »





En tant que membres de l’Initiative de Stockholm, le Canada et la Norvège sont également bien placés pour travailler ensemble au sein de l’OTAN afin de former une cohorte de membres de l’Alliance engagés dans la remise en cause de la politique de dissuasion nucléaire, lors de l’examen actuel par l’Alliance de son « concept stratégique » qui doit être adopté au prochain sommet de l’OTAN en juin 2022.





Le nouveau gouvernement du Canada a une nouvelle occasion de travailler avec des États et des puissances moyennes animés des mêmes idées, comme la Norvège et d’autres, et de revitaliser nos références traditionnelles en matière de désarmement. La menace des armes nucléaires exige des progrès mesurables en matière de non-prolifération et de contrôle des armements nucléaires vers l’élimination des armes nucléaires. Le RCAAN s’attend à ce que notre gouvernement prenne rapidement des mesures concrètes dans cette direction, conformément aux souhaits de la plupart des Canadien.ne.s, et nous sommes prêts à aider à atteindre cet objectif commun.





Nous vous prions d’accepter, l’expression de nos sentiments distingués,





Robin Collins et Dr. Sylvie Lemieux, coprésidents RCAAN





Ainsi que les organisations membres suivantes,
Regroupement pour la surveillance du nucléaire – Gordon Edwards, Président
Canadian Disarmament Information Service  – Metta Spencer, Président
Association Canadienne de Recherche Pour la Paix– Erika Simpson, Président
Les Conférences Pugwash Canada – Cesar Jaramillo, Président
Canadian Voice of Women for Peace – Nancy Covington and Lyn Adamson
Friends for Peacebuilding and Conflict Prevention – Richard Denton
Le Groupe des 78 – Roy Culpeper, Chair
The Group of 78 – Roy Culpeper, Chair
Hiroshima Nagasaki Day Coalition,  Mary-Ellen Francoeur 
International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War Canada – Jonathan Down, Président
Project Ploughshares – Cesar Jaramillo, Executive Director
Religions for Peace Canada – Pascale Frémond, Président
Institut Rideau – Peggy Mason, Président
Science for Peace – Arnd Jurgensen
Le Mouvement fédéraliste mondial – Canada – Alexandre MacIsaac, Executive Director





Signataires supplémentaires

		

				

				

				

				

			
				Commemorating the Hiroshima-Nagasaki Atomic Bombings: 2021 Events in Canadian Cities			
		

				

					
			September 18, 2023		
				

		






This year we commemorate the 76th anniversary of the use of atomic weapons over Japan. A 14-kiloton uranium bomb exploded at Hiroshima on August 6, and a 20-kiloton plutonium bomb on August 9 was dropped over Nagasaki. As many as 225,000 people, most of whom were civilians, died. 





Debates continue to this day over the impact of these bombings on the Japanese surrender that ended World War II. Not in doubt is that tens of thousands of Japanese civilians were intentionally targeted, and slaughtered or maimed by two small nuclear detonations.





In its 1996 Opinion, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) determined: “There exists an obligation to pursue in good faith and bring to a conclusion negotiations leading to nuclear disarmament in all its aspects under strict and effective international control.”





That same year, in 1996, the first meeting of the Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (CNANW) was held. CNANW’s 17 member organizations include faith communities, professional groups, peace research and women’s organizations – all of which work in various ways toward the abolition of nuclear weapons.





Today, nearly 13,000 nuclear warheads still remain,  more than 90% of them belong to Russia and the United States. Average explosive yields are many times the destructive capacity of the bombs dropped over Japan in 1945. 





Across the world, commemorative events are held to remind us of the terrible cost and ongoing dangers of nuclear arms races and the potential impact of even a limited nuclear missile exchange. Yet, the nine official and unofficial nuclear-armed states are intent on retaining, rebuilding and modernizing their warheads.





In Canada this week there are commemorative events in 





Ottawa,  Lantern Ceremony, Friday August 6, 7:30 PM (ET) 5th Avenue/Queen Elizabeth Driveway along the Rideau Canal. 





Toronto,  Hope for the Earth, August 6, 7:00 PM (ET)





Vancouver,  Seaforth Peace Park Flame, August 6 from 6 to 7:30 PM.
(Cornwall and Burrard in Vancouver Centre)





Calgary,  Peace Memorial Weekend, August 6-8 (Lantern Ceremony, Film Fest, Messages for Peace video)





Edmonton: Project Ploughshares’ annual commemoration of the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, a webinar on Saturday, August 7th at 1 p.m (MT), with Cesar Jaramillo (Executive Director of Project Ploughshares), Hon. Douglas Roche, Kirsten Mosey and Paula Kirman, president of Project Ploughshares Edmonton.





Halifax: Nova Scotia Voice of Women have organized a bell ringing at City Hall from 11AM to Noon on August 6. 





Canadian premiere of The Vow from Hiroshima screening





We encourage all to participate and to contribute in ways that speed us towards a world free of nuclear weapons.










Hil Times op-ed link: https://www.hilltimes.com/2021/08/09/commemorating-the-hiroshima-nagasaki-bombings-and-a-call-for-nuclear-disarmament/310630

		

				

				

				

				

			
				CNANW Letter to Prime Minister Trudeau: Canada can join Norway and attend first TPNW meeting			
		

				

					
			September 18, 2023		
				

		

[Aussi, en français: https://www.cnanw.ca/category/documents-en-francais/]





Rt. Hon. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly
Minister of Defence Anita Anand





October 28, 2021





Canada can join Norway and attend first TPNW meeting





Dear Mr. Prime Minister, Madame Foreign Minister and Madame Defence Minister,





This month the Government of Norway announced that it will attend the first Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (1MSP-TPNW) in Vienna (22-24 March 2022) as an Observer. This is welcome news and an indication that, within NATO, States in support of the abolition of nuclear weapons can work together towards that goal whether or not they are signatories to the TPNW. This commitment to dialogue is a particularly important signal to Canada’s new government in the lead up to the Tenth Review Conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) in January 2022.





A recent Nanos poll indicates that 80% of Canadians support nuclear weapons elimination; 74% believe Canada should join the new Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, even if there is pressure from the United States to stay clear. 





The Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (CNANW) encourages Canada to also commit, as Norway has done, to attending the TPNW States parties meeting as an Observer. Our government can make an early and clear statement to this effect and encourage other NATO members to also attend. CNANW supports Canada acceding to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons or to a new comprehensive Nuclear Weapons Convention that will achieve the same stated goal: the total elimination of nuclear weapons.





Canada is able to sign and ratify the TPNW while a member of NATO as long as our government disassociates Canada from NATO’s existing nuclear deterrence doctrine. As recommended unanimously by the House of Commons Standing Committee on National Defence in its 2018 report, Canada can take “a leadership role within NATO in beginning the work necessary for achieving the NATO goal of “creating the conditions for a world free of nuclear weapons.”





As members of the Stockholm Initiative, Canada and Norway are also well placed to work together within NATO to develop a cohort of alliance members engaged in challenging nuclear deterrence policy, during the alliance’s current review of its “Strategic Concept” slated to be adopted at the next NATO Summit in June 2022.





The new government in Canada has a fresh opportunity to work with like-minded States and middle powers, such as Norway and others, and to revitalize our traditional disarmament credentials. The nuclear weapons threat demands measurable progress on nuclear non-proliferation and arms control, and towards the elimination of nuclear weapons. CNANW expects to see early concrete action in this direction from our government, in keeping with the wishes of most Canadians, and we stand ready to assist in achieving this common objective.





Sincerely,





Robin Collins and Dr. Sylvie Lemieux, Co-Chairpersons
Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons
Le Réseau canadien pour l’abolition des armes nucléaires

and the following member organizations:
Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility – Gordon Edwards, President
Canadian Disarmament Information Service  – Metta Spencer, Chairperson
Canadian Peace Research Association – Erika Simpson, President
Canadian Pugwash Group – Cesar Jaramillo, Chair
Canadian Voice of Women for Peace – Nancy Covington and Lyn Adamson
Friends for Peacebuilding and Conflict Prevention – Richard Denton
The Group of 78 – Roy Culpeper, Chair
Hiroshima Nagasaki Day Coalition, Mary-Ellen Francoeur
International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War Canada – Jonathan Down, President
Project Ploughshares – Cesar Jaramillo, Executive Director
Religions for Peace Canada – Pascale Frémond, President
Rideau Institute – Peggy Mason, President
Science for Peace – Arnd Jurgensen
World Federalist Movement–Canada – Alexandre MacIsaac, Executive Director

Additional Signatories: organizations and individuals





Response to CNANW Letter by Office of The Prime Minister:  here





CNANWCanadaAttendTPNW.Oct28.21Download

		

				

				

					
		
				

				

						

				

				

		

				

				

					
RECENT POSTS
				

				

				

				

							

				
				
				
				
				
				
				

		
						

				

				

					

				

				

		

EN / FR