Madeleine Albright

About the author: Madeleine Albright is the U.S. secretary of state.

The Cold War has ended but danger to the United States posed by nuclear weapons has not. To decrease this danger, the United States should ratify the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), which would prohibit all signatories from testing nuclear weapons. The CTBT would increase international security by impeding the development of nuclear weapons by nuclear weapons states and constraining the nuclear capabilities of non-nuclear states. Critics of the CTBT argue that some signatories will ignore the treaty and continue to develop and test nuclear weapons. There will be far less cheating than critics fear, however, because cheaters can be easily detected, and once discovered, will be penalized under international law...