First Committee

Amid divergence on cybersecurity and other critical areas, some delegates called for a return to consensus, as the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) today approved nine draft resolutions and deferred action on another, which proposes moving its seventy‑fifth session overseas.

The First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) today approved three draft resolutions on other weapons of mass destruction, including one on the importance of identifying perpetrators of chemical weapon attacks in Syria, while also hearing delegates reflect on action taken on nuclear‑weapon‑related issues.

Deeply frustrated at the current deadlocked disarmament machinery, delegates offered fresh suggestions on how best to re-activate it at a time when its guidance is urgently needed to ease escalating global tensions, as the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) concluded its thematic discussion on the matter today.

Delegates today set out their countries’ positions on a Middle East zone free of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction, the subject an upcoming conference at Headquarters, as the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) concluded its thematic discussion on regional disarmament and security.

Calling for more control of the flow of small arms and light weapons and enhanced regulations on autonomous weapons systems, delegates highlighted the damage done to communities around the world by a range of legal and illegal weaponry, as the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) concluded its thematic debate on conventional weapons.

Raising concerns for the reappearance of the use of chemical weapons in places such as Syria, Malaysia and the United Kingdom, States exchanged the best ways to identify and bring perpetrators to justice, as the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) continued thematic discussions on conventional arms and other weapons of mass destruction.

Alarmed by the existence of thousands of atomic bombs installed worldwide, delegates today called for concrete steps to be taken, especially by the largest possessor States, to end arsenal modernization plans and to immediately reduce and eventually eliminate stockpiles, as the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) began its thematic discussion on nuclear weapons.

Delegates from developing countries put a harsh spotlight today on the human cost of the worldwide proliferation of small arms and light weapons alongside ballooning military budgets, as the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) continued its general debate.

Speakers today underscored the crucial link between disarmament and sustainable development, alongside a grave concern over the future of the fitful global arms control agenda, as the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) continued its general debate.