Nuclear Legacy is Matter of Intergenerational Injustice, Says ICAN Executive Director

ASTANA – The world has witnessed more than 2,000 nuclear explosions since 1945. Millions of people continue to suffer the consequences. Addressing this problem is a matter of intergenerational injustice, said Melissa Parke, an executive director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), in an interview with The Astana Times. 

Melissa Parke took up the role as ICAN’s Executive Director in September 2023. Photo credit: ICAN

ICAN is a global coalition working to promote the prohibition and elimination of nuclear weapons. Headquartered in Geneva, it played a key role in the adoption of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) in 2017 and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2017 for its efforts. The coalition has more than 650 partner organizations. 

‘No greater injustice than nuclear weapons’

Parke is visiting Astana to attend a workshop on nuclear-weapon-free zones, a regular meeting of the TPNW coordinating committee, a forum of nuclear survivors, and a youth forum. 

All events are held to mark the International Day against Nuclear Tests on Aug. 29. It was designated by the UN in 2009 at Kazakhstan’s initiative. This year’s Aug. 29 marks 75 years since the first Soviet test at the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site. 

Parke saw firsthand the impact of war and weapons on innocent people when she worked with the UN in conflict zones. 

“I have been fighting for human rights and justice my whole life. In my mind, there is no greater injustice against humanity and the planet than nuclear weapons. That’s what drives me,” said Parke, a former Australian Minister for International Development. “I was determined that I would do what I can to be part of the movement to bring about a more peaceful world.”

Leading voice

Parke underscored Kazakhstan’s “long and proud history” of advocating nuclear disarmament. 

“Kazakhstan was the location where more than 450 Soviet tests took place, and it is also the location where extraordinary activism brought about the end of nuclear weapons testing,” said Parke. 

She acknowledged the significant contributions that affected people in Kazakhstan make in driving the global disarmament and non-proliferation efforts by telling their stories. 

“Kazakhstan is a leading voice in promoting nuclear disarmament. Together with Kiribati, Kazakhstan is leading a working group on the Treaty of Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) on victim assistance and environmental remediation,” she said. 

Kazakhstan also chairs the third meeting of states parties to TPNW, scheduled for March 2025 in New York. 

“Kazakhstan’s leadership in this area of nuclear abolition is absolutely vital, and we are very grateful at ICAN that we can partner with Kazakhstan to bring about a big change in the world,” said Parke. 

Rising risks of nuclear weapons use

Hardly anyone would want to think of a scenario when nuclear weapons are used, but the risks are prevalent. According to Parke, the risks of the use of nuclear weapons are now higher than it is ever been. 

“We are seeing two major conflicts involving nuclear-armed states, renewed nuclear threats. In the context of both of those conflicts, we are seeing a breakdown in arms control agreements and a new nuclear arms race underway,” she said. 

The nuclear issue is no longer a binary conversation between two nuclear powers as in the Cold War. 

“Now we have nine nuclear-armed states, and there are other actors as well – nonstate actors, terrorist groups. You also have the possibility of cyber hacking, the use of artificial intelligence in the military. All of these things are increasing the danger and the risk of the use of nuclear weapons, not to mention the fact that nuclear weapons are now many times more powerful than the bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki,” said Parke. 

Parke emphasized this is a matter of intergenerational injustice. 

“We are seeing the radiation impacts of nuclear weapons lasting generations. We are seeing $91 billion being spent on nuclear weapons every year by the nuclear-armed states that could be going into protecting the environment, better healthcare and education, and other things that are important to young people. The nuclear-armed states are very irresponsibly putting their own perceived security needs ahead of the security of the entire world. And it’s not acceptable,” she said. 

Nuclear deterrence, the idea of preventing attacks by making it clear that any attack would result in a powerful and destructive response with nuclear weapons, is a “deeply flawed theory,” Parke said. 

“It relies on an assumption of 100% rationality and predictability of all actors, including one’s enemies, 100% of the time. It assumes complete knowledge of one’s enemies’ intentions. These are bold assumptions to make,” she explained. 

Many things can’t be deterred. At the second meeting of state parties to TPNW in December 2023, participants condemned using such doctrine, highlighting that “deterrence is an unproven gamble.” 

“There have been many accidents and miscalculations involving nuclear weapons over the decades that could have ended in disaster but for luck. As the UN Secretary-General said, ‘Luck is not a strategy.’  Deterrence may well work until the day it doesn’t, and when that day comes, there will be no shelter to be under a nuclear umbrella,” said Parke.  

On the other hand, the civil society advocacy is also growing. Parke stressed that the world needs “dialogue, diplomacy, and disarmament.” “That is what Kazakhstan is a leading voice for. We are very happy to be working with your country,” she added. 

Parke hopes Kazakhstan’s example will motivate other Central Asian countries to join the TPNW. So far, none of the five Central Asian states signed or ratified the treaty. 

An international trust fund to assist survivors

Parke revealed that the third meeting of state parties to the TPNW, which will be held in March 2025 in New York, will focus on establishing an international trust fund to finance projects related to victim assistance and environmental restoration. Kazakhstan and Kiribati, who chair a working group for the TPNW, have proposed this initiative. 

The two countries were also behind a resolution adopted by the UN in October 2023, titled Addressing the Legacy of Nuclear Weapons: Providing Victim Assistance and Environmental Remediation to Member States Affected by the Use or Testing of Nuclear Weapons. While 171 countries voted in favor and six abstained, four states—France, North Korea, Russia, and the United Kingdom—voted against the resolution.

“Above all, Kazakhstan is centering the voices of affected communities, working with Kiribati and other states to make sure that those people are the heroes. They are the people who have bravely told their stories again and again, and we are honoring them here this week,” she said. 

The priority is to achieve justice for affected communities. “They’ve been waiting a long time for not only acknowledgment and recognition of what they’ve suffered but also for compensation. This international trust fund will go a long way towards helping them and remediating those environments that have been contaminated,” said Parke. 

Parke said ICAN’s key focus is to “universalize” the  TPNW to “get as many countries as possible to join.” She hopes such a scenario would put pressure on the nuclear-armed states to give up their nuclear weapons. 

“This was a very successful strategy when it came to other weapons of mass destruction and inhumane weapons such as landmines and customs emissions,” she added. 

Nuclear issues involve everyone

Parke believes addressing these issues does not take only security and disarmament experts. It is a matter for everyone to have a voice.

“At ICAN, we are very keen to ensure that people know that this is an issue that affects everyone, and they all have the right to say something about it. They all have the right to say no to their governments about nuclear weapons. And that movement is growing,” she said. 

While nuclear disarmament often takes a backseat in international discussions, Parke noted addressing it is the least complex issue. 

“Because human beings built nuclear weapons. Humans can dismantle them. All it takes is political will and leadership to make it happen, and that’s what we need,” she said. 

When asked whether a world free of nuclear weapons is achievable, Parke gave a confident ‘yes.’

“I believe with all my heart that we will have a world free of nuclear weapons. We have to. Because nuclear weapons and humanity cannot coexist, we know that for as long as nuclear weapons exist, there is the chance and the increasing probability that they will be used, whether by accident or design,” she said.