Elimination of nuclear weapons an urgent need, UN chief warns
- UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said it is important to ‘focus on the humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons’ and called for a total ban
- There is concern Moscow may follow through on threats to use nuclear weapons and over efforts by China and North Korea to expand their capabilities
The United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres said on Wednesday that there is an “urgent need” for a total ban on nuclear weapons amid heightened tensions stemming from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with Japan able to play an important role in achieving that goal.
His comments to Kyodo News came in advance of the first meeting, to be held on Tuesday in Vienna, of state parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), which entered into force last year.
“Recent events have highlighted the dangers posed by nuclear weapons and have further underscored the urgent need for their total elimination,” he said in a written interview.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which began in February, has led to concern Moscow may follow through on threats to use nuclear weapons.
There is also disquietude over efforts by China and North Korea to expand their nuclear capabilities, with the United States warning Pyongyang may conduct its seventh nuclear test soon.
Guterres said he expects the treaty, which forbids the development and use of nuclear weapons, to become a “complementary part of the nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament regime” which it will strengthen through “its important focus on the humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons.”
