The UN General Assembly First Committee on disarmament and international security has concluded its nuclear weapons debate. ICAN engaged with scores of delegations to further the plan for nuclear abolition.
Every year the UN General Assembly First Committee reviews a series of international disarmament and security issues, including relating to nuclear weapons. The 2026 nuclear weapons discussions reinforced an underlying tension between countries who support the potential use of nuclear weapons, and the global majority who oppose any nuclear weapons use.
Céline Nahory, ICAN’s Director of Governmental Relations, addressed the First Committee meeting. In her statement, she encouraged all states to engage with the upcoming first Review Conference of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW). She went further, reminding states that “Security cannot rest on the threat of mass destruction. The choice before us is not between security and disarmament. Disarmament is the only security that lasts.”
Concerns about the security risks of some states' nuclear weapons policies were also raised by Austria, stating “These risks are built into a security paradigm that rests on the threat of mass destruction. Nuclear deterrence asks all of humanity to accept the risk of catastrophe as the price of security for a few. That is a legitimate security concern for the vast majority of States.”
Canada, speaking on behalf of Albania, Australia, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Finland, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Japan, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Montenegro, the Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, the Republic of Korea, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Türkiye, reiterated concerns about rising nuclear risks. This group of countries argued that the nuclear-armed states, “especially [those with] the three largest arsenals – have a particular responsibility. We call on them to pursue transparency and risk reduction measures, and enter into multilateral strategic stability talks.” The three largest nuclear arsenals are owned by the Russian Federation (5,459), United States (5,277) and China (600).
Speaking on behalf of the States Parties and signatories to the TPNW, South Africa, president of the first Review Conference of the TPNW, set the stage for the next global meeting on nuclear disarmament in their statement. It said that TPNW states “stand united in our unwavering determination to confront escalating nuclear dangers. We will use the First Review Conference of the Treaty to strengthen implementation, deepen cooperation and widen participation. A world free of nuclear weapons, is a global public good of the highest order, and we invite all States to join us in achieving it.”
For more in-depth coverage of the UNGA First Committee, see ICAN’s partner Reaching Critical Will.