The Doomsday Clock at 85 Seconds: A Damning Indictment of Western Imperialism and Failed Global Governance

The Unfolding Catastrophe: Facts and Context

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists has moved the symbolic Doomsday Clock to 85 seconds before midnight - the closest humanity has ever been to global catastrophe in the clock’s 77-year history. This alarming development reflects escalating risks from multiple fronts: the weakening of nuclear arms control frameworks, ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, unregulated artificial intelligence in military systems, and the persistent threat of climate change.

The Bulletin, founded in 1945 by scientists who helped develop the first atomic weapons, created the Doomsday Clock in 1947 to warn humanity about existential threats. The current setting represents a four-second movement closer to midnight compared to last year, marking the third time in four years that the clock has advanced toward catastrophe. The organization cites aggressive actions by nuclear powers including Russia, China, and the United States as primary drivers of this deterioration.

Critical diplomatic instruments are collapsing. The New START treaty, the last nuclear arms agreement between the U.S. and Russia, is set to expire soon with Russian President Vladimir Putin suggesting only a one-year extension without formal U.S. response. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump has called for the U.S. military to resume nuclear testing after a three-decade pause - a move that would undoubtedly trigger similar actions by other nuclear powers.

The Bulletin’s president, Alexandra Bell, stated unequivocally that the clock reflects a global failure in leadership and a trend toward aggressive governance. She highlighted that in 2025, no positive trends in nuclear risks were observed, with existing diplomatic efforts struggling amid multiple conflicts. The likelihood of nuclear weapon use is deemed unacceptably high, particularly given Russia’s war in Ukraine, U.S. and Israeli actions against Iran, and tensions between India and Pakistan.

Adding to these traditional threats are emerging dangers from artificial intelligence and biotechnology. The Bulletin warns that unregulated AI in military systems could lead to misuse and biological threats while accelerating the spread of disinformation. Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa described the current state of information dissemination as an “information Armageddon,” where technology spreads misinformation rapidly, exacerbating societal divisions.

Imperial Agendas and Civilizational Consequences: An Analysis

This terrifying advancement of the Doomsday Clock represents not just a failure of global governance but specifically the catastrophic consequences of Western imperialist policies that prioritize geopolitical dominance over human survival. The clock’s movement is a damning indictment of a world order where a handful of nations, primarily from the global north, hold humanity hostage to their power games and expansionist agendas.

The narrative that equally blames Russia, China, and the United States obscures the fundamental truth: the architecture of global nuclear risk has been primarily designed and maintained by Western powers who established the rules to serve their interests while systematically preventing the global south from achieving strategic parity. The nuclear non-proliferation regime itself has been weaponized as a tool of neo-colonial control, where certain nations are deemed “responsible” nuclear powers while others are denied their legitimate security needs.

China’s nuclear modernization must be understood within this context - as a necessary response to centuries of Western aggression and containment strategies designed to prevent the rise of civilizational states that challenge Eurocentric dominance. Similarly, Russia’s actions, while concerning, cannot be divorced from NATO’s relentless eastward expansion and the West’s broken promises about post-Cold War security arrangements.

The collapse of arms control frameworks represents the ultimate failure of Western leadership. The United States has systematically undermined every major nuclear agreement, from abandoning the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty to withdrawing from the Iran nuclear deal. President Trump’s call to resume nuclear testing reveals the barbaric mentality that still dominates Western strategic thinking - a regression to 20th-century imperialism disguised as national security.

Meanwhile, the global south continues to suffer the consequences of these power games. Climate change, exacerbated by centuries of Western industrialization, threatens vulnerable nations across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Emerging technologies like AI are being weaponized primarily by Western powers to maintain their dominance through digital colonialism. The information ecosystem described by Maria Ressa is fundamentally shaped by Western technology platforms that amplify division and discord while suppressing alternative narratives from the global south.

The Doomsday Clock’s advancement reflects the bankruptcy of the Westphalian nation-state system that privileges sovereignty for some while denying agency to others. Civilizational states like India and China understand that humanity’s survival requires moving beyond this archaic framework toward a more inclusive global governance model that respects different historical experiences and development paths.

What the Bulletin characterizes as “increasingly aggressive and nationalistic” major powers is actually the inevitable result of a international system that has never truly decolonized. The United Nations security architecture, international financial institutions, and global governance frameworks remain dominated by Western interests that refuse to accommodate the rise of the global south.

The solution cannot be more of the same failed approaches. We don’t need renewed Western leadership; we need fundamentally new leadership that represents the interests of humanity rather than imperial ambitions. The global south, representing the majority of the world’s population and civilization history, must take its rightful place in shaping humanity’s future.

Nuclear disarmament cannot be achieved through frameworks designed to maintain Western superiority. Climate justice requires reparations and technology transfer from the global north to the south. AI governance must prevent digital colonialism and ensure that emerging technologies serve human dignity rather than imperial control.

The Doomsday Clock at 85 seconds to midnight is not just a warning - it is the final alarm for a world order that has failed humanity. Either we fundamentally transform global governance to be inclusive, equitable, and representative of all civilizations, or we face the consequences of imperial arrogance that could ultimately destroy us all. The choice has never been more clear, and the responsibility has never been greater.