Calling on Russia and China to Declare Explicitly That U.S. Cities Are No Longer Targets for Nuclear Attack
Adopted at the 74th Annual Meeting in 2006
WHEREAS, during the Cold War many cities in the United States were targeted for attack by the Soviet and Chinese nuclear forces; and
WHEREAS, the strategy of mutually assured destruction envisioned the tit-for-tat slaughter of a large portions of the urban populations of the United States, Russia, and China; and
WHEREAS, the Cold War has been over for fifteen years and our worst fear today is that terrorists will obtain and use a nuclear weapon; and
WHEREAS, the United States now has extensive commercial interaction and cultural exchange with Russia and China; and
WHEREAS, the International Court of Justice found in 1996 the threat or use of nuclear weapons to be generally unlawful under International Humanitarian Law; and
WHEREAS, the U.S. Conference of Mayors stated on 28 June 2004, "weapons of mass destruction have no place in a civilized world," and further called for the commencement of "negotiations on the prohibition and elimination of nuclear weapons and nuclear-weapon- related materials,"
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED THAT the U.S. Conference of Mayors seek assurances from the Governments of Russia and of China that they explicitly rule out U.S. cities as targets of nuclear attack; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the U.S. Conference of Mayors calls upon the U.S. Government to provide corresponding assurances to Russian and Chinese cities; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the U.S. Conference of Mayors express its solidarity with any city seeking such assurances from any nuclear-armed state; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the U.S. Conference of Mayors opposes the initiation of nuclear warfare under any circumstances and whatever the target, and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the U.S. Conference of Mayors shall remain engaged in this matter until our cities are no longer under the threat of nuclear devastation.