NTI’s Richard Johnson Testifies before Congress on Strengthening the NPT

Richard Johnson, Senior Director for Fuel Cycle and Verification at NTI, testified before the House Foreign Affairs Committee regarding the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) on Tuesday.

Johnson argued that the NPT has been the cornerstone of the nuclear nonproliferation regime but that it is currently “under strain” due, in part, to growing frustration among the non-nuclear weapon states about the
perceived slow pace of nuclear disarmament. He noted that North Korea and Iran are
clear exceptions that provide lessons for how to strengthen the treaty’s
implementation. 

You can watch the full testimony below, or read the remarks here.

The NPT is a multilateral treaty aimed at limiting the spread of nuclear
weapons including three elements: (1) non-proliferation, (2)
disarmament, and (3) peaceful use of nuclear energy. These elements
constitute a “grand bargain” between the five nuclear weapon states and
the non-nuclear weapon states.