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On his way to speak at an informal session of the UN General Assembly to commemorate the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons, the President of the General Assembly, Mr. Mogens Lykketoft, stopped by an exhibitition to publicise the day.
The International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons was celebrated for the first time on 26 September.
“This day provides an occasion for the world community to reaffirm its commitment to global nuclear disarmament as a high priority,” Mr. Lykketoft said. “But it also provides an opportunity to educate the public—and their leaders—about the real benefits of eliminating such weapons, and the social and economic costs of perpetuating them. For the United Nations, commemorating this day is of special importance, given its universal membership and its long experience in grappling with nuclear disarmament issues. It is the right place to address one of humanity’s greatest challenges, achieving the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons.
“Leaders of nuclear-armed States should use the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons to commence a process for the controlled elimination of nuclear weapons,” he added.
But he also stressed 2015 as a good starting point: “We can celebrate the 26th September with the good news that we now have the Iran nuclear agreement. That is one important step in preventing the proliferation of nuclear weapons.”
During the Sustainable Development Summit, he discussed risks, achievements and future actions to promote the nuclear disarmament with Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament (PNND).
Mr. Lykketoft stresses the importance of orchestrated action of the UN by calling for greater connection between the three core pillars of the UN – development, human rights and peace & security. In particular, he calls on the more powerful countries to take the lead by reducing military spending, resolving conflicts peacefully and contributing more to development.
He acknowledges the importance of the United Nations General Assembly for facilitating progress on these pillars. ‘The General Assembly is the democratic, all-inclusive body of the United Nations. It provides moral authority and moral pressure on those who are the big military spenders to live up to their obligations to support sustainable development and reduce spending on an incredibly costly armament race.’
Achieving global nuclear disarmament is one of the oldest goals of the United Nations. It was the subject of the General Assembly’s first resolution in 1946. It has been on the General Assembly’s agenda along with general and complete disarmament ever since 1959. It has been a prominent theme of review conferences held at the UN since 1975 of States parties to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. It was identified a priority goal of the General Assembly’s first Special Session on disarmament in 1978, which attached a special priority to nuclear disarmament. And it has been supported by every United Nations Secretary-General.
Yet today, some 16,000 nuclear weapons remain. Many countries possessing such weapons have well-funded, long-range plans to modernize their nuclear arsenals. More than half of the world’s population still lives in countries that either have such weapons or are members of nuclear alliances. As of 2015, not one nuclear weapon has been physically destroyed pursuant to a treaty, bilateral or multilateral, and no nuclear disarmament negotiations are underway. Meanwhile, the doctrine of nuclear deterrence persists as an element in the security policies of all possessor states and their nuclear allies. This is so—despite growing concerns worldwide over the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of the use of even a single nuclear weapon, let alone a regional or global nuclear war.