what do you understand by gandhi's action plan?
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Thirty years ago on this day, the then Indian Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, presented the most comprehensive proposal for global nuclear disarmament at the United Nations. In line with India’s decades-long pursuit of a world free of nuclear weapons, the ‘Action Plan for a Nuclear Weapon Free and Non-Violent World Order’ sought a universal, comprehensive, and legally-binding commitment to the staged elimination of nuclear weapons within a defined time-frame.
In his historic speech at the UN on June 9, 1988, Rajiv Gandhi termed 'nuclear deterrence' as the “ultimate expression of the philosophy of terrorism, holding humanity hostage to the presumed security needs of a few.” It remains, till date, the only available plan of action on the subject of nuclear disarmament ever presented by a head of government to the UN.
In principle, the proposal opposed nuclear arms on three counts – these weapons are inherently immoral and abhorrent as they do not distinguish between combatants and non-combatants and have consequences far beyond the time and scope of any war; they make international politics undemocratic by holding it hostage to inhuman threats; and the global nuclear arms race diverts the planet's precious resources away from humanity's most pressing needs to weapons and their delivery systems which are inexcusably expensive. It also stressed that all these implications become even more significant when it comes to developing nations.
Thirty years ago on this day, the then Indian Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, presented the most comprehensive proposal for global nuclear disarmament at the United Nations. In line with India’s decades-long pursuit of a world free of nuclear weapons, the ‘Action Plan for a Nuclear Weapon Free and Non-Violent World Order’ sought a universal, comprehensive, and legally-binding commitment to the staged elimination of nuclear weapons within a defined time-frame.
In his historic speech at the UN on June 9, 1988, Rajiv Gandhi termed 'nuclear deterrence' as the “ultimate expression of the philosophy of terrorism, holding humanity hostage to the presumed security needs of a few.” It remains, till date, the only available plan of action on the subject of nuclear disarmament ever presented by a head of government to the UN.
In principle, the proposal opposed nuclear arms on three counts – these weapons are inherently immoral and abhorrent as they do not distinguish between combatants and non-combatants and have consequences far beyond the time and scope of any war; they make international politics undemocratic by holding it hostage to inhuman threats; and the global nuclear arms race diverts the planet's precious resources away from humanity's most pressing needs to weapons and their delivery systems which are inexcusably expensive. It also stressed that all these implications become even more significant when it comes to developing nations.
A LEGACY THAT THE WORLD RESPECTS
Rajiv Gandhi’s proposal at the UN sought to infuse much-needed sanity, as the sun was setting over the world-order underpinned by the Cold War. Today, it serves as a reminder that Rajiv Gandhi was way ahead of his times in thinking of a cogent response to the challenges of the nuclear age that imperils human civilisation as we know it.