Reconsidering UK Disarmament, or: Lady Ashton's Your Woman

Henry Kissinger once asked, "Who do I call if I want to call Europe?"

It seems the answer to that question has a new face: On November 19, the European Union appointed Catherine Ashton to the post of High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. As the European equivalent of US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the Right Honourable Lady Ashton will become, upon European Parliament confirmation, the chief diplomat of the EU and will help shape the foreign and security policy positions of the Union, thus contributing to a unification of the coalition.

Considering Lady Ashton's relatively unknown position in international politics, her new role as the European Union's top diplomat is an interesting choice. I wonder how effective she will be in her High Rep position. Undoubtedly, she will face a steep uphill climb during her first year in office, as she works to build her base of supporters and earns buy-in from both politicians in the UK and in the wider European community.

At the same time, her background presents what I think is a unique opportunity in moving us forward towards a world free of nuclear weapons. Doing a quick search on Lady Ashton reveals that for at least two years, she was involved with the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, a British organization formed in 1958 that continues to be a loud and adamant voice opposed to the existence and proliferation of nuclear weapons. During her time there, Lady Ashton rose to the position of vice-chair, and undoubtedly her experience with CND has influenced her political work since.

Now that she has become the High Rep, Lady Ashton is in a unique position to leverage her CND experience in shaping the European Union's foreign policy. But she first must start at home: the United Kingdom continues to maintain its Trident submarine missile system, and as recently as three days ago, Admiral Mark Stanhope of the British Royal Navy concluded that no less than four Trident submarines are needed at all times to sustain the British nuclear deterrent. The United Kingdom is in the paradoxical situation of being one of the few recognized nuclear weapons powers in the world, while at the same time being the birthplace of the nuclear disarmament movement. Lady Ashton's position, therefore, puts her in the epicenter of the paradox and endows her with a potential heretofore unprecedented for any member of the European Union.

On a side note, and to understand just how influential the British nuclear disarmament movement has been on world politics and culture, consider the following symbol:


People all over the world recognize it as the peace symbol. But its origins are directly from CND: in 1958, an artist created the sign from the letters N and D, as represented in semaphore:

The letter N

The letter D

N is for Nuclear; D is for Disarmament. Overlaying the semaphore representations of the two letters yields the cross with arms we so quickly associate with peace. CND created this symbol over 50 years ago and adopted it as the visual manifestation of everything their movement represents. Lady Ashton was once a part of this organization.

One major step that can be taken in eliminating nuclear weapons worldwide is if all nuclear weapons states adhere to Article VI of the 1968 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The UK can take a very large step in the right direction by reducing, and then altogether eliminating, its Trident missiles. And perhaps the right person to do the job is Lady Ashton.

Well, Mr Kissinger. If you want to call Europe, call Lady Ashton. She's your woman.