"The consequences of any further use of nuclear weapons, whether intentional or by mistake, would be horrific. When it comes to our common objective of nuclear disarmament, we must not delay -- we must act now."
- Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon
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(Sculpture depicting St. George slaying the dragon. The dragon is created from fragments of Soviet SS-20 and United States Pershing nuclear missiles. Credit: UN Photo/Milton Grant )
FWOY's feature theme for this month is the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons, with accordance to the UN Calendar. 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. 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.
These facts provide the foundation for the General Assembly's designation of 26 September as the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons. This Day provides an occasion for the world community to reaffirm its commitment to global nuclear disarmament as a high priority. It 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. Commemorating this Day at the United Nations is especially important, 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.
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The following is the statement by Mr Mogens Lykketoft, President of the 70th session of the General Assembly, at the Commemoration of the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons
Honourable Ministers, Mr. Secretary-General, Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, it is my honor to address you as we observe the International Day for the total elimination of Nuclear Weapons.
The 70th anniversary of Hiroshima and Nagasaki that we commemorate this year remind us of the devastating humanitarian consequences of the use of nuclear weapons. Indeed, just three weeks ago, I had the privilege to visit Hiroshima and to meet directly with one of hibakusha. Her name was Keiku. She was 78 years old and by some miracle her whole family survived. But the loss and suffering caused by those nuclear bombs have strengthened my resolve to use my tenure as President, to appeal to all of you to work together in the pursuit of a total elimination of nuclear weapons.
In our world today, there are more than 16,000 nuclear warheads, many on high alert status. Over the past few years, we have seen international tensions increase, tensions which could at any moment spiral out of control. In truth, so long as nuclear weapons continue to exist, we will remain forever on the brink of a nuclear catastrophe, intentional or accidental.
A world without nuclear weapons is a shared responsibility of each and every one of us. We must rebuild trust and confidence so as to avoid any missteps or accidents which could lead to nuclear war. In this regard, I pay tribute to all of the efforts of the international community to reach a global consensus on how to achieve this goal without further delay. But we can and we must work harder to overcome the profound differences across the membership, find a way to get things going and agree on how to achieve the global zero.
Ladies and gentlemen, the 2030 Agenda, agreed over the weekend, shows us what we can be done when we embrace our interdependencies and engage in meaningful and inclusive dialogue with each other, with civil society, young people and others. The recent Iranian nuclear agreement demonstrated that, concerted diplomatic efforts can and do succeed. But for that, one needs leadership, compromise and trust.
Let us bear these examples in mind as we work together in the year ahead.
I appeal to you all for your full commitment in this endeavor.
