As delegates gather in New York for a week of negotiations, we will be following the discussions closely and providing ongoing coverage. As we know, Britain is boycotting the talks, but our UN Ambassador did manage to make an appearance yesterday in support of the US.
Three of the nuclear weapons states made a bid for attention by holding a press conference outside the ban negotiation room, led by US Ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, who denounced the negotiations. She was backed up by the French and British Ambassadors. The latter, Matthew Rycroft, insisted that the ban cannot and will not work, repeating the government’s longstanding view that the best way to achieve global nuclear disarmament is gradual multilateral negotiations with a step by step approach within existing international frameworks. As we have said many times before, if there was any evidence of that actually happening, this position would be taken more seriously.
My colleague Russell Whiting comments here on other news from Day One:
"Negotiations on a treaty to ban nuclear weapons are underway at the United Nations in New York. This is a day that CND has been working towards for many decades, but our pleasure at the start of the negotiations is coupled with frustration that a number of states - including the UK - have decided to boycott the process.
Before the start of the meeting today the US, UK and France held a media briefing to confirm their opposition to the ban treaty. It was especially disappointing to see the UK representative claim to support multilateral nuclear disarmament while standing feet away from a serious effort to bring about the nuclear free world that our own government claims to support. Throughout the day nuclear armed states were urged to take part, with the representative of Jamaica quoting Ronald Reagan in saying “The only value in our two nations possessing nuclear weapons is to make sure they will never be used. But then would it not be better to do away with them entirely?”
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The negotiations began with a statement on behalf of the Pope, who described the talks as “an exercise of hope”. That was followed by a statement from the International Committee of the Red Cross, who said that the negotiations had “historical significance”.
The most moving speech of the first day was from Toshiki Fujimori, a survivor of the Hiroshima bombing. Earlier in the day CND hosted two Hibakusha (the Japanese term for these survivors) in our London office and their stories and strength continue to inspire us.
Throughout the morning speakers representing governments across the globe spoke in favour of the ban. The Austrian representative asked why, if nuclear weapons provide such good security, the entire world should not be able to possess them. Many representatives highlighted the fact that nuclear weapons remain the only weapons of mass destruction not prohibited by international law, with Costa Rica highlighting the historical precedent that banning weapons leads to their elimination.
The Community of Latin American and Caribbean States representative said that in a nuclear war there would be no neutral actors as everyone would suffer. Other representatives recalled the horrors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and pointed out that the nuclear weapons of today are much more powerful and sophisticated.
The representative of the Arab States noted that the nuclear armed states have failed to provide a timescale for disarmament. The representative from Egypt added that this process would not be necessary if the nuclear armed states had done more on this issue.
While the UK stands by nuclear weapons as necessary for security, Chile’s representative at the UN said nuclear weapons are the largest factor in global insecurity and described a ban as a “liberating initiative destined to benefit all humanity”. There were repeated calls for the treaty to complement the Non-Proliferation Treaty and fill the legal loopholes within it.
The only dissenting voice of those present came from Japan. The representative said that without the nuclear armed states the divisions in the international community on this issue would continue to grow. While attending, Japan will not be engaging in the negotiations.
Throughout the afternoon session states set out what they wanted to see included in the treaty. These included: threat of use; transportation; stockpiling; transfer; testing; developing; financing and use of nuclear weapons. These details will continue to be discussed and refined throughout the week.
It is clear after the first day of negotiations that the majority of the international community is coming together on this issue. While the UK talks to cameras about a world without nuclear weapons, countries which take that idea seriously are talking to each about how to bring it about."