No one‍‍`s safe as long as nuclear weapons exist, Momen says at UN

Bangladesh has emphasised the urgent need for global efforts to eliminate nuclear weapons and ensure a safer world.

"No one is safe as long as nuclear weapons exist," Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen said yesterday while speaking at a high-level plenary meeting of the 78th Session of the UN General Assembly to commemorate the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons.

Momen urged the world to stop investing in nuclear weapons proliferation and instead redirect these resources to preventing climate change, promoting sustainable development, and ensuring peace and stability.

He said that death and destruction caused by nuclear weapons cut across borders and generations.

"The total elimination of nuclear weapons is the only absolute guarantee against this menace," said the foreign minister.

Dr Momen reiterated Bangladesh‍‍`s firm belief in the total elimination of nuclear weapons and its commitment to the Treaty on Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).

He welcomed the first State Parties‍‍` meeting to the TPNW, its declaration, and a 50-point Action Plan, emphasising the importance of full implementation by all nations, including nuclear-weapon states and nuclear-umbrella states.

The Bangladeshi foreign minister also highlighted the risks of nuclear use, whether by intent or accident.

"There are no right hands to handle these wrong weapons," he said.

Momen called upon the nuclear weapon states to take stringent measures to avoid the risk of nuclear weapons falling into the hands of terrorists or other unauthorised actors.

He called for increased investment in research of nuclear technology and exploration of the potentials of the peaceful use of nuclear energy for the benefit of humankind.

The foreign minister called for a global culture of peace, renewed efforts towards a nuclear-free world, and the resumption of disarmament negotiations.

The high-level plenary meeting to commemorate and promote the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons was held on Tuesday at the United Nations General Assembly in New York, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.