To mark the August 29 International Day Against Nuclear Tests, dozens of UN member states met for more than four hours at UN Headquarters in an informal session of the General Assembly on September 2. In a series of statements from the floor, senior diplomats from key countries, including Russia, China, France, acknowledged the 20th anniversary of the historic events that led to the closure of the former Soviet nuclear test site of Semipalatinsk, where more than 456 explosions contaminated the land and its people.
At the end of the session, ACA--on behalf of nongovernmental organizations--addressed the gathering and delivered a statement endorsed by 24 organizations from 8 countries. See: http://www.armscontrol.org/events/International-Day-Against-Nuclear-Tests-Translating-Words-Into-Action
Iran was among the delegations that spoke on the CTBT. Ambassador and Deputy Permanent Representative Eshagh Al Habib said in a prepared statement that the Islamic Republic “considers this treaty as a step towards disarmament."
In response to Iran's statement, ACA's Daryl Kimball noted that Article VI of the nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty obliges all states—the nuclear weapon states and the non-nuclear weapon states—to contribute to disarmament and Iran must do its part by ratifying the CTBT without delay.
Other events to mark the International Day Against Nuclear Tests were held in Geneva, Switzerland; in Las Vegas, Nevada; and on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C..