Humanitarian Pledge

Humanitarian Pledge

Stigmatize, prohibit and eliminate nuclear weapons

Nuclear weapons are the only weapons of mass destruction not yet explicitly prohibited under international law. The Humanitarian Pledge is a commitment by nations to fill this unacceptable “legal gap”. It offers a platform from which they can – and must – launch negotiations on a treaty banning nuclear weapons.

The Pledge was issued on 9 December 2014 at the conclusion of the Vienna Conference on the Humanitarian Impact of Nuclear Weapons, attended by 158 nations. This important document provides governments with the opportunity to move beyond fact-based discussions on the effects of nuclear weapons to the start of treaty negotiations.

Outlawing nuclear weapons is not a radical proposition: it enjoys widespread support among nations, and is the logical and necessary course of action in light of the indiscriminate and catastrophic effects of any use of these weapons. ICAN is calling on all nations to endorse the Pledge and join negotiations for a ban.

The United Nations General Assembly has adopted the Pledge in the form of a resolution.

The following 127 nations have formally endorsed the Pledge:

In addition, the following 23 nations have voted in favour of the Pledge resolution:

Armenia
Azerbaijan
Bangladesh
Belarus
Bhutan
Cameroon
Equatorial Guinea
Gabon
Laos
Maldives
Morocco
Mozambique
Myanmar
Nepal
New Zealand
Rwanda
Solomon Islands
Sweden
Switzerland
Syria
Tonga
Turkmenistan
Uzbekistan

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The Facts

“Let’s act up! Ban nuclear weapons completely and unconditionally.”

Ai Weiwei Artist and activist
“If Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr were alive today, they would be part of ICAN.”

Martin Sheen Actor and activist
“I salute ICAN for working with such commitment and creativity.”

Ban Ki-moon Former UN chief
“We can do it together. With your help, our voice will be made still stronger. Imagine peace.”

Yoko Ono Artist
“Governments say a nuclear weapons ban is unlikely. Don’t believe it. They said the same about a mine ban treaty.”

Jody Williams Nobel laureate
“With your support, we can take ICAN its full distance – all the way to zero nuclear weapons.”

Desmond Tutu Nobel laureate
“Because I cannot tolerate these appalling weapons, I whole-heartedly support ICAN.”

Herbie Hancock Jazz musician
“I can imagine a world without nuclear weapons, and I support ICAN.”

Dalai Lama Nobel laureate