Beatrice Fihn, who has headed the Nobel Prize-winning International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons for nearly a decade, is to step down, the organisation said Tuesday.

The 40-year-old Swedish lawyer accepted the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of ICAN and its work championing an international treaty banning nuclear weapons.

Since Fihn took the reins of what was a small non-profit group in 2014, "the campaign has tripled in size and established itself as a powerful and modern global movement for nuclear disarmament," ICAN said.

It now consists of more than 650 partner organisations across 110 countries.

The organisation's crowning achievement was helping to convince 122 governments to negotiate and adopt the landmark Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) at the UN in 2017.

That treaty came into force last year and currently has 91 signatory states.

Fihn said she felt "enormously privileged" to have been executive director.

"With all the talent, commitment and strength in this movement right now, I am confident to hand over the leadership to someone new, and I know that ICAN will succeed and achieve its goal of prohibiting and eliminating nuclear weapons," she said.

Fihn did not divulge her plans but said she would remain engaged in the campaign and the work to ensure the implementation of the TPNW.

ICAN said its international steering group would recruit a new executive director "to build on Ms Fihn's achievements and drive ICAN's work towards the full implementation of the TPNW which has forged a strong international norm against nuclear weapons."

In the interim, current campaign coordinator Daniel Hogsta will become acting executive director from February 1, it said.

Related Links
Learn about nuclear weapons doctrine and defense at SpaceWar.com
Learn about missile defense at SpaceWar.com
All about missiles at SpaceWar.com
Learn about the Superpowers of the 21st Century at SpaceWar.com

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

'Dangerous rhetoric' stoking nuclear tensions: UN chief
Fes, Morocco (AFP) Nov 22, 2022
United Nations chief Antonio Guterres warned on Tuesday against "dangerous rhetoric" stoking tensions among nuclear-armed rivals. "Growing divisions are threatening global peace and security, provoking new confrontations and making it all the more difficult to resolve old conflicts," Guterres told a conference in Morocco. "Dangerous rhetoric is raising nuclear tensions," he warned. "At the same time, we are dangerously close to the edge on the climate, while hate speech and disinformation ar ... read more