‘Looming’ risk of nuclear arms race, UN proliferation meeting hears

With atomic powers at loggerheads over safeguards, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned trust is wearing thin

Signatories of the landmark nuclear non-proliferation treaty began a meeting on Monday at the United Nations in New York as fears of a renewed arms race escalate, with atomic powers again at loggerheads over safeguards.

In 2022, during the last review of the treaty considered the cornerstone of non-proliferation, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned humanity was “one misunderstanding, one miscalculation away from nuclear annihilation”.

On Monday he warned “the drivers” of nuclear weapons proliferation were accelerating.

“For too long, the treaty has been eroding. Commitments remain unfulfilled. Trust and credibility are wearing thin. The drivers of proliferation are accelerating. We need to breathe life into the treaty once more,” Guterres said in opening remarks.

With global geopolitical friction only heightened since the last meeting, it was unclear what the gathering at UN headquarters could achieve.

France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told signatories that “never has the risk of nuclear proliferation been so high and the threat posed by Iran’s and North Korea’s programmes is intolerable for each and every state party to this treaty”.