Disarmament

NEW YORK, 17 April (Office for Disarmament Affairs) — A delegation supporting the work of the Security Council’s 1540 Committee has concluded a four-day visit to Zambia, conducted upon invitation by the Government.

Nuclear disarmament was at a crossroads, with the Korean peninsula a “touch-and-go powder keg” and the oldest and newest nuclear-weapon States in sharp confrontation with each other, the representative of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea told the Disarmament Commission today, as Member States concluded the general debate of their annual substantive session.

The United Nations Disarmament Commission’s significance as a platform for dialogue and cooperation had only been heightened in light of current rising global tensions and mistrust, the 193-member subsidiary body heard today during its general debate, moving into the second day of its 2015 session.

With armed violence killing more than 740,000 people each year and the prospects of deeper nuclear arms cuts slim, the United Nations disarmament machinery must end its 15 year-long stalemate so it could tackle those twenty-first century security threats, the Disarmament Commission heard today, although it proved unable to agree on a work programme and begin its substantive debate.

Following is UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s message on the fortieth anniversary of the entry into force of the Biological Weapons Convention, today:

The following statement by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was issued today:

Following is UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s video message to the Informal Conference on Disarmament, held in Geneva today:

Following is UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon’s message, as delivered by Michael Møller, Acting Secretary-General of the Conference on Disarmament, to the Conference on Disarmament, in Geneva, today:

The Disarmament Commission, in an organizational meeting this morning, elected the Chair for its 2015 substantive session and reviewed its agenda at the start of a new three-year cycle, which would be held from 6 to 24 April.

The following statement by UN Secretary‑General Ban Ki‑moon was issued today: