Nigeria has pledged Africa’s support to the non-proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction mass (WMD), saying a world free of nuclear weapons is the ideal society it envisaged.
Prof. Tijjani Bande, Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the UN, delivered this position on behalf of the African Group at the 72nd Session of the UN General Assembly General debate on disarmament and international security.
The Nigerian envoy said: “The continued existence and possession of nuclear weapons do not guarantee security but an affirmation of the risks of their potential use.
“Our world, including the outer space, must be free of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction.
“It is in this context that the African Group stresses the need for the nuclear weapons States to cease their further modernisation, upgrading, refurbishment, or extending the lives of their nuclear weapons and related facilities”.
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Bande said the African Group re-affirmed the central role of nuclear-weapon-free zones in the consolidation of the NPT, as well as in their contributions to addressing nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation across all regions of the world.
The Nigerian envoy said: “In this context, the African Group remains committed to the Treaty of Pelindaba.
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“The African Group remains deeply concerned over the illicit trade, transfer, manufacture, possession and circulation of small arms and light weapons, their excessive accumulation and uncontrolled spread in many regions of the world, particularly on the continent of Africa.
“The Group remains committed to the UN Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALWs) in All Its Aspects,” Bande said.
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