ABSTRACT
On April 5, 2009, the new US president set out his vision for the future of American security in a speech in the Czech capital, Prague, “So today, I state clearly and with conviction America's commitment to seek the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons.” He did not stop there, but continued to say:
Now, let me describe to you the trajectory we need to be on. First, the United States will take concrete steps towards a world without nuclear weapons. To put an end to Cold War thinking, we will reduce the role of nuclear weapons in our national security strategy, and urge others to do the same … To reduce our warheads and stockpiles, we will negotiate a new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty [START] with the Russians this year. 1
