PRO

Resolved: Unilateral military force by the United States is justified to prevent

nuclear proliferation.
Definitions:
justified show to be just, right, or reasonable (Stanford.edu)
military force performed by armed forces (Merriam-webster)
prevent be in readiness for (Merriam-webster)
nuclear produced by, or involving nuclear weapons (Merriam-webster)
4 contentions:
1. Pre-emptive self defense
For the US to use military force to prevent nuclear proliferation is simply a
preemptive act of self-defense.
a) Its legal.
Kaufman: pre-emptive self-defense is clearly permissible under international law, as
part of the inherent right of self-defense.
Reisman, American Journal of International Law: State practices since 1945 support
the acceptance of preemptive self-defense."
b) Its necessary.
Reisman: "A state need not await an armed attack, particularly with weapons of
mass destruction and the rise of global terrorism. Accepting this new approach to
self-defense would maintain world public order because it would serve to deter state
and non-state actors from programs likely to lead to armed conflict. "
We cannot wait until after aggressive countries and terrorist groups have attacked
because the consequences of nuclear weapons are too great, leading to human
extinction from the destruction and pollution of radioactive waves throughout the
air and waterways.
Washington Times writes, "There is no such thing as an excess of caution when it
comes to anticipating and preparing to deter or defeat the existential threat
represented by nuclear weapons."
2. Multilateral Failures
It is evident that previous multilateral attempts at preventing nuclear proliferation
have failed.
a) Organizations and Treaties
Treaties like the NPT obviously dont work because countries can simply withdraw or
be non-compliant, as with North Korea. Action by the IAEA is also limited, and
countries can simply deny the IAEA access to its nuclear facilities.
b) Sanctions
Sanctions are ineffective, mis-targeted, and counterproductive.

PRO
-For more than 40 years, sanctions have proven again and again to be ineffective.
Cato Institute- "Since 1970 unilateral economic sanctions imposed by the United
States have failed to work in 87 percent of the cases in which they have been tried."
-Sanctions are mis-targeted, more likely to punish the innocent civilians of a country
than the actual government.
From CATO: "Sanctions have not worked to achieve their political goals of
domestic change. The
sanctions' main victims are the people themselves."
-Sanctions are also counterproductive, worsening the original problem and creating
even more. According to the U.S. Council, "more than $6 billion in U.S. export sales
and 120,000 jobs were
put at risk by U.S. actions."
By cutting off trade and diplomatic negotiations with global powers, the US is,
in effect, not only hurts its own economy, but also isolates itself and destroys its
own influence in other countries, and in fact arouses anti-Americanism in other
countries.
3. Tritium
Unilateral military force can be domestic and therefore is legal and justified.
Definition: Tritium is a radioactive isotope of hydrogen that has one proton and two
neutrons.
Uses: from the Global Security Newswire, Tritium in every U.S. nuclear weapon. If a
warhead's tritium has been removed, the explosive power of the weapon would be
diminished.
The IAEA states, "The NSG certainly recognizes the key role tritium plays in nuclear
weapons: it includes the gas and its means of production subject to strict
nonproliferation export control."
a) Civilian facilities are unsafe and unprotected, creating proliferations concern .
Tritium is currently produced at two civilian nuclear facilities at Watts Bar and
Chattanooga, Tennessee. These facilities are of the outdated ice condensers with
antiquated nuclear regulations and a terrible security, a maximum of five guards
outsourced by the Tennessee Valley Authority.
Bergeron: Unprotected tritium will increase the likelihood that nuclear weapons will
spread to countries or groups that now do not possess them. The new policy is bad
for US national security and for world security. With tritium being such a valuable
and desired resource, the US would be justified in sending unilateral military force to
Watts Bar to protect the tritium source and so prevent nuclear proliferation.
Bergeron It should be a top priority within the US government to erect barriers to
such diffusion of nuclear secrets and bomb-making materials. For these reasons,
we urge a pro ballot.