Foreign Minister Sugiono Emphasized The Importance Of Nuclear Weapons Distribution At The United Nations

Indonesian Foreign Minister Sugiono. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia Sugiono emphasized the importance of dismantling nuclear weapons because it can be the biggest threat to mankind.

The statement was made by Foreign Minister Sugiono at the High Level Session to commemorate the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons at the United Nations Headquarters, New York, United States, Friday, September 26, in a series of the 80th UN General Assembly.

Foreign Minister Sugiono also highlighted the ownership of more than 12,000 nuclear warheads by a handful of countries, including those outside the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

Indonesia urges nuclear weapons-owning countries to stop modernization and expansion, take concrete steps towards dismantling, and demonstrate political commitment to a world free from nuclear weapons, "said Foreign Minister Sugiono, quoted by Antara.

Furthermore, Foreign Minister Sugiono emphasized the importance of revitalizing weapons dismantling mechanisms, as well as an invitation for all countries to join the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) - an international agreement to completely ban the ownership, testing, and threats of the use of nuclear weapons.

The Foreign Minister also reminded that the threat of nuclear weapons is increasing with the emergence of new risks such as cyber attacks, artificial intelligence, and terrorism.

This risk cannot be fully controlled. The only way to prevent it is through the elimination of total nuclear weapons," he said.

Closing his statement, Foreign Minister Sugiono emphasized that 2026 NPT Review Conference should be an important momentum to strengthen the commitment to armament and prevent a nuclear disaster.

TPNW itself was adopted in 2017 and took effect on January 22, 2021. To date, the agreement has been signed by more than 90 countries and ratified by more than 70 countries, including Indonesia.

As for September 26, 2013, at the initiative of Indonesia as the Coordinator of the Non-Aligned Movement (Pokja GNB) Working Group for Arms Distribution, the UN General Assembly has held a High-level Meeting of the General Assembly on Nuclear Dissarmation.

As a follow-up to the meeting, in October 2013, Indonesia, on behalf of GNB, formulated and proposed a draft resolution (ranres) entitled Follow-up to the High-level Meeting on Nuclear Disarmement, which was passed on December 5, 2014.

The resolution, which is routinely ratified annually, has asked the Secretary-General of the United Nations and UN member states to take the necessary steps in commemoration and promote the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons annually.

This is a form of educational efforts and increased awareness about the threat of humanity due to nuclear weapons, and gathered the views of UN member states on efforts to realize the overall nuclear weapons cuts.