Prospects at Nuclear Conference Unravel
(Charles J. Hanley, Associated Press)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...5052500266.html

Wednesday, May 25
The world's nuclear tensions, distilled into words on paper, threatened on Wednesday to wreck a conference to strengthen the nonproliferation treaty, as diplomats labored on into the monthlong meeting's final days.

One of three committees ended its closed-door work with no recommendations to forward, in part because of Iran's objection to being singled out as a proliferation concern. The two other committees also wrangled behind closed doors over a long list of divisive issues, among them U.S. objections to wording related to the disarmament obligations of nuclear-weapons states under the 1970 treaty.

Many nuclear "have-nots" complain the weapons states are moving too slowly toward disarmament, and cite in particular Bush administration talk of "modernizing" the U.S. nuclear arsenal and its rejection of the 1996 treaty banning nuclear tests.