Overview

• U.S. nuclear test survivors known as downwinders secured a 2025 expansion of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, extending benefits to communities long excluded.
• Japanese hibakusha have received little formal recognition or recompense from the U.S. government despite decades of advocacy and Nobel Peace Prize–winning testimony.
• First-hand accounts from survivors like Tetsuko “Tess” McKenzie are highlighting the enduring physical and psychological impact of the 1945 bombings.
• Campaigners are urging the United States, Russia and China to ratify the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty to reinforce global nonproliferation norms.
• With the New START treaty set to expire in 2026 and Iran and North Korea advancing their nuclear programs, policymakers face urgent arms control and transparency challenges.