UN Chief Calls for Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons

Nagasaki Peace Statue in Nagasaki Peace Park, Japan.

Eighty years after the United States dropped two atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the “only guarantee” against the use of nuclear weapons today is their “total elimination,” the UN Secretary-General said on Friday.

Inspired by the hibakusha—survivors of the atomic bombings at the end of World War II who turned their suffering into a powerful appeal for peace—António Guterres renewed his call for a world free of nuclear weapons in a video message to the 11th General Conference of Mayors for Peace in Nagasaki.

United against nuclear weapons, the conference provides an opportunity for mayors from around the world to discuss and adopt key priorities in support of global denuclearisation.

“Nuclear weapons have no place in our world,” said Mr. Guterres in his video message, noting they offer only “the illusion of safety and the certainty of devastation.”

Calling for the total elimination of nuclear weapons, the Secretary-General urged all participants to “keep mobilising communities, inspiring young people, and building peace from the ground up.”

“I urge all States to recommit to nuclear disarmament,” he said.

“I commend Mayors for Peace for your unwavering commitment to a better world,” Mr. Guterres added, noting that the organisation aims to create real momentum toward achieving a peaceful world without nuclear weapons.

In honour of the hibakusha and in memory of the victims of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Mr. Guterres made an impassioned call for action to end the nuclear threat once and for all.