Truly, the world is mad (Fears of new arms race after Putin’s missile claim, 2 March). Despite the vast majority of the UN’s member states voting for a total ban on nuclear weapons, Trump and Putin continue to put the whole future of the human race at risk with their bellicosity combined with ever-increasing destructive power. We may feel helpless, but there is something constructive the UK can do. On 14–16 May 2018, the UN general assembly will hold a conference on nuclear disarmament in New York. Similar conferences in the past have helped to achieve breakthroughs on difficult issues such as climate change. This one could likewise help to reverse the new dash to Armageddon. At present the UK and the other nuclear weapon powers are not committed to attend. The UK government should take a lead in accordance with its professed commitment to a world free of nuclear weapons, achieved by multilateral negotiations, by attending and urging the US and Russia to return to the negotiating table.
Frank Jackson
Former Co-chair, World Disarmament Campaign, Harlow, Essex
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