Hiroshima survivor Setsuko Thurlow has issued an appeal to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to publicly acknowledge Canada’s extensive participation in the creation of the atom bombs that destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki. She asked that the Prime Minister issue a statement of regret on behalf of the Canadian government for the immense deaths and suffering inflicted on the two cities and asked that Canada ratify the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

Support for the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons continues to grow, with Sudan becoming the 82nd nation to sign the landmark agreement on 22 July. Its signature follows ratifications earlier this month by Fiji and Botswana. Only 10 more ratifications are needed to reach the threshold of 50 ratifications to enable the treaty’s entry into force.

In a press statement celebrating the 11th anniversary of the entry into force of the Pelindaba Treaty, the African Commission on Nuclear Energy (AFCONE) reiterated its call to all African Union Member states to join the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear weapons as a way to build on the commitments to nuclear disarmament outlined in the Treaty of Pelindaba, which declares Africa a Nuclear-Weapons-Free Zone. 

Botswana has become the 40th nation to ratify the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons – a landmark global agreement negotiated in 2017 to outlaw the worst weapons of mass destruction and establish a framework for their total elimination. Only 10 more ratifications are now needed to reach the threshold of 50 ratifications for the treaty’s entry into force.

The Pacific island state of Fiji has become the 39th nation to ratify the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. The Fijian ambassador to the United Nations, Satyendra Prasad, announced the ratification at an event on 7 July to mark the third anniversary of the adoption of the landmark agreement by a large majority of the world's nations. He said the treaty has particular resonance in the Pacific as a region that has suffered from decades of nuclear testing by colonial powers.

On 6 June 2020, Lesotho ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, becoming the third member of the Southern African Development Community to do so, after South Africa and Namibia. The landmark treaty, which comprehensively outlaws the worst weapons of mass destruction and establishes a framework to eliminate them, will enter into legal force once 12 more nations have ratified it.

19 May 2020

Caribbean support for the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) continues to grow, with Belize ratifying the landmark agreement on 19 May. Belize is the seventh member of the Caribbean Community, or CARICOM, to become a party, following Guyana, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Dominica, and Antigua and Barbuda. Caribbean nations have been vocal supporters of the TPNW, reflecting their longstanding support for diplomatic efforts to achieve a more peaceful world free from the threat of nuclear weapons.

As governments work to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus, progress continues to be made towards eliminating another great threat to humanity: nuclear weapons. On 20 March, Namibia became the 36th nation to ratify or accede to the landmark 2017 Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), which establishes a categorical ban on the worst weapons of mass destruction and provides a pathway to their total elimination. Several other nations have also recently indicated that, despite these very difficult times, they are continuing to take steps towards ratifying the TPNW.

Given the clear relationship between nuclear weapons and gender, nuclear disarmament must be raised in conversations about gender, women’s rights and equality. This briefing paper breaks down that relationship and the importance of states addressing the specific impact of nuclear weapons on women and girls, work to ensure full representation of women in weapons negotiations and sign and ratify the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.