Disarmament

Today, the selected 100 young participants of the Youth Leader Fund for a World without Nuclear Weapons convened for the first time.

The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:

Following is UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ message, as delivered by Adedeji Ebo, Officer-in-Charge, Director and Deputy to the High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, to the Virtual Launch of the Youth Leader Fund for a World Without Nuclear Weapons, today:

Small arms and light weapons are key drivers of hostilities and “de facto weapons of mass destruction”, killing 700 people per day, speakers told the Security Council today during a debate that highlighted the need for the 15-nation body to mount a comprehensive response that included strict control over diversion of those weapons to conflict zones.

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) notes with concern that exchanges of fire across the Blue Line continued throughout the weekend, with reports that people were injured on both sides of the border. This follows the reported deaths of three people there following exchanges of fire on 1 December.

GENEVA, 4 December (Office for Disarmament Affairs) — The twenty-second Republic of Korea-United Nations Joint Conference on Disarmament and Non-Proliferation Issues is taking place at the United Nations Office at Geneva, on 4-5 December. This year’s conference is dedicated to addressing the critical theme of “Governance of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the Military Domain.”

The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres:

Following is UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ message on the Day of Remembrance for All Victims of Chemical Warfare, observed on 30 November:

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is intent on continuing to pursue its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programmes, in violation of relevant Security Council resolutions, a senior United Nations official told the 15-member organ today on the heels of Pyongyang’s recent rocket launch.

NEW YORK, 24 November (Office for Disarmament Affairs) — The second Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons will be held at the United Nations Headquarters from 27 November-1 December 2023. Juan Ramón de la Fuente (Mexico) was elected as President of the Meeting.