Sun Xiaobo, Director General of the Department of Arms Control of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, China stated that the nations with the largest nuclear arsenals should either negotiate a treaty prohibiting them from using nuclear weapons against one another or at least make a political declaration in this respect.
On 28 February 2024, Sun Xiaobo, Director General of the Department of Arms Control of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, China, urged nuclear states to fulfill their “special and priority responsibilities” on nuclear disarmament, at the U.N. Conference on Disarmament in Geneva (the World’s single multilateral disarmament negotiating forum).
He stated that the nations with the largest nuclear arsenals should either negotiate a treaty prohibiting them from using nuclear weapons against one another or at least make a political declaration in this respect.
Sun also proposed a universal, non-discriminatory, non-proliferation export control order as it would help to preserve the legitimacy of the arms control treaty system.
Furthermore, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also highlighted that the conference was failing in its objectives and called on the countries to accelerate the implementation of all nuclear disarmament commitments.
He acknowledged that the victories for peace were “hard-fought and hard-won” but added that these were not “miracles.” They happened because countries recognized that the key to disarmament could be found in cooperation for mutual benefit cooperation for mutual destruction,” he added.
“Humanity needs the Conference on Disarmament to work successfully. The paralysis and deadlock that have come to define it is something that is not acceptable,” he added.
Consisting of 65 Member States, including the five declared Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) States with nuclear capability (China, France, Russia, United Kingdom, and the United States), the conference also invites non-members to participate in its work. At the moment, the only two nuclear-armed nations that formally uphold a no-first-use policy are China and India. The largest nuclear arsenals in the world are held by the United States and Russia.
Sun described the international strategic security situation as facing new challenges, and that countries with the strongest military power have repeatedly “broken treaties” in order to “seek their own absolute superiority.
Although Sun emphasized the main nuclear countries’ lack of seriousness and coordination, it is alarming to realize that the world is currently experiencing extremely unstable and unpredictable security conditions. Before it is too late, it is imperative that the world’s leading nuclear powers unite together for a future where everyone is safe.
