Atomic Weapons Summit: the world is “miscalculated from nuclear annihilation”

The UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterreson Monday he warned that the world is “just a misconception or miscalculation far from nuclear annihilation,” for which he called for agreements with the atomic powers to reduce this grave threat.

“Humanity risks forgetting the lessons forged by the terrifying flames of Hiroshima and Nagasaki,” said Guterres opening a review conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

The UN chief complained that in a time of strong geopolitical tensions and mistrust, countries are moving away from disarmament and, instead, are seeking “a false sense of security”. spending “hundreds of billions of dollars in doomsday weapons that have no place on our planet.

Guterres has recalled this at present there are nearly 13,000 nuclear weapons memorized and underlined the risk that this entails in the face of crises such as those in Ukraine, the Middle East or the Korean peninsula.

“We had extraordinary luck so far, but luck is not a strategy. Nor is it a shield against the geopolitical tensions that lead to a nuclear conflict, “he insisted.

According to Guterres, the NPT review conference that began on Monday is an opportunity to agree on measures to help prevent disasters and move the world towards a nuclear-weapon-free future.

The Portuguese diplomat encouraged participating governments to reaffirm the rule against the use of nuclear weapons with practical measures to reduce the danger of a nuclear conflict, but also to advance in the reduction of stocks in view of the total elimination.

Atomic energy and climate change

Also, he asked modernize the NPT go beyond the current status quo e promote the peaceful use of atomic energy in response to the climate crisis.

Guterres also called for negotiations on atomic issues in the Middle East – with reference to Iran – and in Asia – in the case of North Korea – and warned that by adding to these conflicts the threat of nuclear weapons these regions are heading towards a “catastrophe”.

The NPT Review Conference, traditionally held every five years, opened in New York two years late from the covid-19 pandemic and marked by strong tensions between countries with nuclear weapons.

The treaty, to which they acceded almost all countries in the worldaims to stop the expansion of atomic weapons and commits the five official nuclear powers (USA, Russia, France, China and the UK) to disarmament policies.

Putin: “In a nuclear war there are no winners”

In remarks released by the Kremlin at the start of the New York conference, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia attaches great importance to the objective and depoliticized use of the mechanisms of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to achieve compliance with the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Putin assured that all countries that respect the NPT treaty “should have the right to the peaceful atom without any additional conditions”.

“We are ready to share our nuclear energy experience with our partners,” he said.

However, he made it clear “There can be no winners in a nuclear war. and this must never be unleashed, we support equal and indivisible security for all members of the international community “.

Biden and an appeal to Russia and China

In turn, US President Joe Biden has called on Russia and China to do so engage in nuclear arms control talks, stating that Moscow in particular bears such responsibility since its invasion of Ukraine.

The US president explained in a statement that his administration is willing to do so “quickly negotiates” a text to replace New STARTthe treaty restricting the US and Russia’s intercontinental nuclear weapons and expiring in 2026.

“Russia must show that it is willing to resume work on nuclear arms control,” Biden said.

“But negotiation requires a partner willing to do it operate in good faith. Y Russia’s brutal and unprovoked aggression in Ukraine it has broken the peace in Europe and constitutes an attack on the fundamental principles of the international order ”.

China has increased its nuclear capacity in recent years, although its arsenal today is much smaller than that of the United States and China.

Biden said Beijing has a duty, as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, “to engage in talks that reduce the risk of miscalculations and address destabilizing military dynamics.”

“There is no benefit to any of our nations, or to the world, in resisting a commitment to arms control and nuclear non-proliferation,” Trump said.

Source: Agencies

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