The Urgent Need to Strengthen the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Regime
The crisis over Iran’s non-compliance with its nuclear non-proliferation obligations leads many officials and observers to conclude that the non-proliferation regime is doomed to failure. Some say that the regime worked exceptionally well for three decades, which is a great achievement, but has been eroded to the point of collapse by the tides of history. Others say that treaty-based non-proliferation was always a fool’s errand, and the folly is finally being exposed.

Such pessimism is premature, dangerous, and potentially self-fulfilling. Moreover, by castigating the non-proliferation regime or inspections, the pessimists deflect attention from where the real problem lies: the weak will and short-sighted nuclear policies of the international community...