The word “Doomsday” has its roots in Old English for “Doomsday.” The unveiling of this year’s Doomsday Clock is indeed a time to judge our political leaders.
Year after year, they fail to address existential threats, such as nuclear weapons, the climate crisis, and pandemics, which threaten the very future of life on Earth.
The decision of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists moving the hands of the Doomsday Clock to 90 seconds to midnight, the closest it has come to “zero hour” since its first introduction in 1947, underscores the perilous situation facing humanity.
We live today in a world of interlocking crises, each illustrating the unwillingness of leaders to act in the true long-term interests of their people.
Last year, Russia’s war on Ukraine and President Vladimir Putin’s provocative rhetoric and posturing raised the risk of apocalyptic nuclear conflict to its highest level since the Cold War.
But while Russia bears sole responsibility for its aggression against Ukraine, the tense state of the nuclear deterrence is the result of the actions and inactions of all the nuclear states and their allies over many years.
Through a combination of complacency, arrogance, and deliberate undermining, much of the architecture critical to nuclear weapons control and nonproliferation has been undermined in recent decades, including the abandonment of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty and the Open Skies Treaty by the United States. United States and Russia.
At the same time, Washington and Moscow have continued to invest in new technologies such as hypersonic missiles and space-based systems, and the rapid and opaque nature of technological development further contributes to mutual mistrust.
In this context, and despite continued Western support for Ukraine, the United States and Russia must reinvigorate risk reduction options, such as military-to-military contacts, to decrease the probability of a nuclear miscalculation, as established after the missile crisis in Cuba. of 1962 and subsequently strengthened.
Good faith bilateral dialogue and multilateral cooperation are indispensable if we are to have any hope of addressing the existential threats highlighted by today’s Doomsday Clock announcement.
The climate crisis, nuclear proliferation and pandemics cannot be addressed by any country alone, but require multilateral action and bold ethical leadership.
Nelson Mandela remains for me the example of bold and ethical leadership. He sensed these threats, and the need for a collective response, when in 2007 he founded The Elders, the group of independent former world leaders that he chairs today.
Events of the past 15 years have validated his analysis and explain why, in 2023, The Elders have a renewed focus on what world leaders must do to address these deadly global challenges.
None will be outdone by the hollow promises of populism or the naively utopian demands. They require tough, practical decisions and a long-term commitment of resources and political capital, along with some immediate steps that decision makers can take in the coming months.
While there have been some recent signs of progress in the climate sphere, such as the decision to fund so-called “loss and damage” funds for climate-vulnerable countries at COP27 in November, lasting change will only come when states actually comply. and implement their commitments.
The G7 leaders must fulfill their commitment to end all inefficient fossil fuel subsidies by 2025 and lead the world in accelerating the transition to net zero.
At the same time, international financial institutions, including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, must be redesigned to help raise the trillions of dollars needed to support vulnerable countries and tackle the climate crisis and other global challenges, as proposed in the “Bridgetown Initiative” of the Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley.
Equity and solidarity must also be the hallmarks of the world’s continued response to Covid-19 and efforts to prevent and prepare for future pandemics.
Strong global political leadership from heads of state and government is required to implement the recommendations of recent independent panels on Covid-19. This should include supporting and strengthening the World Health Organization and a concerted push for a new pandemic treaty to address systemic barriers to equitable access to vaccines, diagnostics and therapies, backed by significant financial investment.
This is a daunting global agenda that calls for urgent action if the hands on the Doomsday Clock do not mercilessly tick to midnight. World leaders must take the lead and deliver with their people.
Although these challenges may seem insurmountable, we have no choice but to act. As Mandela himself said: “It always seems impossible until it is done”.
Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland, is the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and President of The Elders. Follow the elders on Twitter @theelders
