Remarks by H.E. Mr Mogens Lykketoft, President of the 70th session of the General Assembly, at UN “Poster for Peace” contest congratulatory ceremony
3 May 2016
Thank you very much Mr. KIM Won-soo.
Mr Secretary-General, UN Messenger for Peace, Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, as you know, many thousands of nuclear weapons remain in our world today and the proliferation of all kinds of weapons remains one of the biggest threats to global peace and security.
Just before taking office last September, I visited Hiroshima where I heard first hand from one of the survivors of that nuclear attack.
It reminded me that we simply have to do more to make our world free of nuclear weapons.
As long as they continue to exist, we simply cannot assure that they will be used again.
I thank all those who entered this competition and I congratulate the winners for their creativity and artistic skills.
You have helped the United Nations to communicate about the need to eliminate nuclear weapons and all weapons of mass destruction.
We have no shortage of fora and tools to make this happen, but ultimately, it takes political will and courage.
We must rebuild trust and confidence so as to avoid any missteps or accidents which could lead to nuclear war.
We can and we must work harder to overcome differences and find a way to achieve the global zero.
A world without nuclear weapons is a shared responsibility of each and every one of us.
Thank you.