ABSTRACT
Nuclear disarmament will need to provide for eliminating existing nuclear arsenals, eliminating mission-critical nuclear weapon facilities, and preventing nuclear-armed States from rearming. In July of 2017 a United Nations Conference completed drafting the Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (the TPNW). Foreseen in the TPNW, the objectives would be verified primarily through controls on fissile material removed from nuclear weapons, and controls on weapon-usable nuclear materials that could be used to manufacture new weapons. Parties to the TPNW need to plan a sequential approach to disarmament, putting in place check points and chances for modifications that may be necessitated by external considerations. While the International Nuclear Disarmament Agency and the International Atomic Energy Agency should provide the verification foundation for all nuclear-armed States, TPNW parties might engage first in bilateral agreements and fold their arrangements into the TPNW when they are ready.
