This year, the Science and Security Board of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists moves the hands of the Doomsday Clock forward, largely (though not exclusively) because of the mounting dangers of the war in Ukraine. The Clock now stands at 90 seconds to midnight—the closest to global catastrophe it has ever been.
by Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
The war in Ukraine may enter a second horrifying year, with both sides convinced they can win. Ukraine’s sovereignty and broader European security arrangements that have largely held since the end of World War II are at stake. Also, Russia’s war on Ukraine has raised profound questions about how states interact, eroding norms of international conduct that underpin successful responses to a variety of global risks.

And worst of all, Russia’s thinly veiled threats to use nuclear weapons remind the world that escalation of the conflict—by accident, intention, or miscalculation—is a terrible risk. The possibility that the conflict could spin out of anyone’s control remains high.
Russia’s recent actions contravene decades of commitments by Moscow. In 1994, Russia joined the United States and United Kingdom in Budapest, Hungary, to solemnly declare that it would “respect the independence and sovereignty and the existing borders of Ukraine” and “refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of Ukraine…” These assurances were made explicitly on the understanding that Ukraine would relinquish nuclear weapons on its soil and sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty—both of which Ukraine did.
Russia has also brought its war to the Chernobyl and Zaporizhzhia nuclear reactor sites, violating international protocols and risking widespread release of radioactive materials. Efforts by the International Atomic Energy Agency to secure these plants so far have been rebuffed.
Recent Posts
Japan Prepares To Sway Agenda Towards Green Development at G7 Summit
March 31, 2023
Take Action Now Transparency and accountability (on these actions) is critical, she declared. “Hiroshima represents a very critical time to…
Selective Outrage In Palestine: The Problem Is Not Just Smotrich But Zionism
March 31, 2023
Take Action Now Smotrich’s call for the destruction of Huwwara is not an alien position in Israel’s history of ethnic cleansing and “incremental…
US Companies Complain Of Worker Shortages While US Deports Workers To Their Deaths
March 31, 2023
Take Action Now We militarize our borders and keep people seeking work from doing it. Then legislators insist we need child labor to fill a “worker…
Bernie Sanders Vs. Howard Schultz: Longtime Starbucks CEO Grilled On Company’s Union-Busting Tactics
March 30, 2023
Take Action Now Bernie Sanders grilled the former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz about the company’s illegal anti-union practices by Amy…