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First Committee

19 October 2016
GA/DIS/3557

Debating Proposals on Common Principles to Ensure Outer Space Security, First Committee Delegates Call for Adoption of Legally Binding Treaty

A guiding set of common principles was needed to encourage responsible behaviour and secure outer space safety and security, the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) heard today as other speakers debated the need for legally binding instruments with reliable guarantees.

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18 October 2016
GA/DIS/3556

Chemical Weapon Use Must Not Become ‘New Normal’, First Committee Speakers Warn, Issuing Calls for New Solutions to Combat Bioterrorism Threats

Speakers expressed their deep concern with the danger of non-State actors and terrorist groups obtaining and using chemical and biological weapons, but differed on ways to approach the issue, as the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) concluded its thematic debate on weapons of mass destruction this morning.

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17 October 2016
GA/DIS/3555

At Strategic Juncture in Disarmament Drive, All States Must Focus on End Goal of Building Nuclear-Weapon-Free World, First Committee Speakers Warn

Pointing to past and potential nuclear catastrophes, several non-nuclear States expressed alarm that the fate of global security remained in the hands of just a clutch of nuclear-weapon and nuclear-armed States, as the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) concluded its debate on nuclear weapons.

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14 October 2016
GA/DIS/3554

As First Committee Addresses Nuclear Weapons Concerns, States Present Views on Necessity of Legally Binding Treaty Prohibiting Atomic Bombs

Several nuclear-weapon States reiterated their opposition to a proposed legally binding treaty to prohibit nuclear weapons leading to their elimination, saying that such an instrument would not contribute to enhancing global peace and security, as the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) continued its thematic debate on those arms this afternoon and heard the introduction of two draft resolutions.

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13 October 2016
GA/DIS/3553

Collective Action Must Swiftly Address Potentially Catastrophic Impact of Nuclear Terrorism, Panellists Tell First Committee, as Thematic Debate Begins

Amid rising terrorist threats and rapid technological advances, the potential “catastrophic” impact of nuclear terrorism required the international community to urgently band together to prevent nuclear and other toxic materials from falling into the wrong hands, the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) heard during a thematic discussion and debate.

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12 October 2016
GA/DIS/3552

States Must Work Diligently to Halt Arms Proliferation, Advance Talks on Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapons, First Committee Hears, Concluding General Debate

The First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) concluded its general debate today after hearing an appeal for a treaty to prohibit nuclear weapons and a halt to the provision of weapons to parties to armed conflict in violation of international humanitarian law.

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11 October 2016
GA/DIS/3551

First Committee Speakers Raise Grave Concerns about Broad Range of Weapons Widely Circulating in Volatile Regions Plagued by Terrorist Groups

Among the gravest threats today, the widespread circulation of conventional weapons, including shipments reaching terrorist groups operating in vulnerable regions, was killing thousands of people and affecting millions more, the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) heard today as it continued its general debate.

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10 October 2016
GA/DIS/3550

Shift Obscene Amounts of Military Expenditure into Efforts to Tackle Urgent Global Sustainable Development Challenges, First Committee Speakers Urge

Obscene amounts were being spent on military budgets and to maintain and modernize nuclear weapons at the expense of such pressing global issues as sustainable development, climate change and the refugee crisis, the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) heard today.

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7 October 2016
GA/DIS/3549

Disarmament Efforts Must Support, Not Thwart, Push for Global Social, Economic Development, Speakers Tell First Committee

For the sake of humanity and the planet, Member States must ensure that disarmament efforts supported, rather than thwarted, global economic and social development, the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) heard today as its general debate continued.

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6 October 2016
GA/DIS/3548

Nuclear-Weapon States in First Committee Justify Deterrence Policies amid Calls for Transferring Bloated Defence Budgets to Development Efforts

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea defended its nuclear weapons programme before the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) today, with its representative saying his Government had no option but to build a nuclear deterrent in response to threats from the United States.

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