NEWS
Nuclear Threat: Nigeria Demands Total Elimination As Guterres Warns Of Most Dangerous Moment Since Cold War
Nuclear Threat: Nigeria Demands Total Elimination As Guterres Warns Of Most Dangerous Moment Since Cold War
Nigeria has demanded the complete elimination of nuclear weapons, warning that humanity cannot continue to base collective security on weapons capable of destroying civilisation and causing catastrophic humanitarian consequences.
Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Jimoh Ibrahim, said the country neither possesses nor intends to develop nuclear weapons.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned that the world is experiencing its most dangerous nuclear moment since the end of the Cold War, with nuclear arsenals being expanded and modernised while arms-control safeguards are weakening.
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Nigeria urged nuclear-weapon States to fulfil their disarmament obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, while supporting the peaceful use of nuclear science and technology for healthcare.
September 30, () – Nigeria has demanded the complete elimination of nuclear weapons, warning that humanity cannot continue to depend on weapons capable of destroying civilisation as instruments of collective security.
Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Jimoh Ibrahim, made the call on Tuesday at a high-level UN General Assembly meeting in New York commemorating the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons.
The meeting was held against the backdrop of growing international concerns over the continued existence of nuclear arsenals, the modernisation of nuclear weapons and the weakening of global arms-control arrangements.
Ibrahim said Nigeria firmly believed that the only guarantee against the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons was their total elimination.
“Nigeria firmly believes that the only guarantee against the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons is their total elimination,” he said.
The envoy said Nigeria did not possess nuclear weapons, had never pursued a nuclear-weapons programme and had no intention of developing one.
“Nigeria does not possess nuclear weapons, has never pursued a nuclear-weapons programme and has no intention of doing so. Our security does not depend on nuclear weapons,” Ibrahim said.
According to him, enduring global security should instead be anchored on dialogue, international law, multilateral cooperation and the equal security of all countries.
He said the administration of President Bola Tinubu remained committed to international efforts aimed at achieving a world free of nuclear weapons.
“President Tinubu has consistently affirmed Nigeria’s readiness to work with the international community in advancing nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation,” Ibrahim said.
He added that Nigeria envisaged “a world in which no nation needs to rely on nuclear weapons for its security.”
Ibrahim urged nuclear-weapon States to honour their disarmament obligations under Article VI of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT).
He called on the nuclear powers to fulfil their longstanding commitments toward the irreversible, transparent and verifiable elimination of their nuclear arsenals.
“The continued modernisation of nuclear weapons and reliance on nuclear deterrence only heighten the risks of miscalculation, escalation and catastrophic humanitarian consequences,” he said.
The Nigerian envoy reaffirmed the country’s strong commitment to the NPT, describing it as a cornerstone of the international nuclear non-proliferation regime.
He also encouraged countries that have yet to join the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons to consider doing so as part of collective efforts to eliminate nuclear weapons.
Ibrahim pointed to Africa’s experience under the Treaty of Pelindaba, which established the continent as a nuclear-weapon-free zone.
“Africa has already demonstrated what is possible through the Treaty of Pelindaba. Nigeria remains proud of Africa’s contribution to global nuclear disarmament and supports the establishment and strengthening of nuclear-weapon-free zones in other regions,” he said.
UN Secretary General António Guterres
Guterres Sounds Global Alarm
The Nigerian call came as UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned that the world was facing its most dangerous nuclear moment since the end of the Cold War.
Guterres gave the warning at the General Assembly plenary meeting commemorating the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons.
“We meet at the most dangerous nuclear moment since the end of the Cold War,” Guterres told world leaders in New York.
He warned that 81 years after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, nuclear weapons continued to cast an increasingly dark shadow over humanity.
“And that shadow is darkening. Nuclear arsenals are being expanded and modernized. The rattling of nuclear sabers is growing louder. Advances in technology are increasing the odds of mistake and miscalculation,” he said.
According to the UN chief, safeguards painstakingly built over decades to contain nuclear dangers were collapsing at a time when the international community needed them most.
Guterres particularly lamented the expiration of the New START Treaty, which had imposed limits on the strategic nuclear arsenals of the United States and Russia.
He warned that the deterioration of nuclear arms control threatened not only nuclear-weapon States but the entire international community.
The Secretary-General also expressed concern over continuing difficulties confronting the international nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation architecture.
He cited the failure of efforts under the NPT framework to produce substantive consensus on advancing nuclear disarmament.
“The lights are flashing red,” Guterres warned, urging world leaders to reverse the deterioration of international nuclear arms-control mechanisms.
He stressed that nuclear weapons could not provide lasting security in a world where their very existence carried the potential for catastrophic consequences.
Guterres urged countries possessing nuclear weapons to uphold existing moratoriums on nuclear testing and refrain from actions capable of triggering a new arms race.
He warned that advances in technology could shorten decision-making times during crises, complicate crisis management and increase the possibility of misunderstanding, accident or catastrophic miscalculation.
The Secretary-General stressed that nuclear disarmament was not an abstract aspiration but an urgent requirement for humanity’s survival and collective security.
He said the international community must reject the belief that peace could indefinitely rest on the threat of mutual destruction.
Guterres maintained that the only certain protection against the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons was their complete elimination.
“Our goal must be clear: the total elimination of nuclear weapons,” he said.
Nigeria Backs Peaceful Nuclear Technology
While advocating the elimination of nuclear weapons, Ibrahim stressed that Nigeria supported the right of countries to develop and use nuclear science and technology for peaceful purposes.
He said such applications should comply with international obligations and contribute to critical areas including healthcare, agriculture, energy, water management and sustainable development.
“The choice before us is clear. Our collective security cannot continue to depend on weapons capable of destroying humanity,” Ibrahim said.
He pledged Nigeria’s continued engagement with other UN Member States to advance practical, inclusive and verifiable multilateral measures toward complete nuclear disarmament.
“Nigeria, under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, will continue to work with all Member States” toward achieving “a safer, more peaceful and nuclear-weapons-free world,” he said.
Background
The International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons is observed annually on September 26 to mobilise global action and public awareness about the threat nuclear weapons pose to humanity and the need for their total elimination.
The UN General Assembly established the observance to strengthen international commitment to nuclear disarmament and increase public awareness of the humanitarian and security risks associated with nuclear weapons.
The global nuclear disarmament debate has gained renewed urgency amid concerns over the modernisation of nuclear arsenals, deteriorating arms-control agreements and rising geopolitical tensions.
Against this backdrop, Nigeria’s intervention at the UN reinforced its longstanding position against nuclear proliferation while advocating the peaceful use of nuclear technology.
For Nigeria, Ibrahim said, the ultimate objective remained a world in which no country would need nuclear weapons for its security and where collective peace would be sustained through international law, cooperation and diplomacy rather than the threat of mass destruction.