On February 16th, METO and the University of St. Andrews Foreign Affairs Society hosted a roadshow discussion on the future of Weapons of Mass Destruction in Global Politics. Emad Kiyaei joined via Zoom to talk to many St. Andrews students interested in futures in diplomacy and disarmament. Britt Gronemeyer, a member of METO’s university network moderated the event.
It began with an introduction of Emad Kiyaei and his work, after which, he began to give a broad summary of the 9 nuclear countries, the process in which nuclear weapons are developed, and the catastrophic impact they could have on our world. Additionally, he briefly discussed the previous treaties and efforts made diplomatically to limit their use.
Emad highlighted the complicity of Western nations in profiting off of the development of Weapons of Mass Destruction as well as provided context in which Iranian and Israeli authorities are treated different regarding their nuclear programs. He focused on the efforts made by other countries to develop their nuclear programs and the damage that those, even focused on nuclear energy, have made. Following the information regarding the current state of nuclear weapons on a geopolitical scale. Emad pointed to methods the public and members of METO can and are currently using to engage in the fight against nuclear weapons, including METO’s Draft Treaty, outreach, and education.
The latter half of the event consisted of a question-and-answer section in which students asked Emad about the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, the effectiveness of the NPT, power dynamics in Iranian and American nuclear negotiations, and the impact of Weapons of Mass Destruction in regard to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The audience was attentive and engaged with multiple students coming up at the end asking how to join the University Network.
Watch the full event here: