According to the statement:
- The 64th session of the United Nations General Assembly declared 29 August as the International Day against Nuclear Tests through the unanimous adoption of its resolution 64/35 on 2 December 2009. The Day is meant to galvanize the efforts of the United Nations, Member States, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, academic institutions, youth networks and the media in informing, educating and advocating the necessity of banning nuclear tests as a valuable step to achieving a safer world. The Preamble of the resolution emphasizes “that every effort should be made to end nuclear tests in order to avert devastating and harmful effects on the lives and health of people …and, that the end of nuclear tests is one of the key means of achieving the goal of a nuclear-weapon-free world.”
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called upon the international community to use the day as an opportunity to advance the anti-nuclear test agenda.
- There is real momentum behind this great cause. The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference ended successfully, invigorating the nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation regime. The Nuclear Security Summit in Washington D.C. made important headway. Bold initiatives by world leaders and civil society are showing the way toward reduced arsenals and changed policies.
As we mark the first International Day against Nuclear Tests, I look forward to working with all partners in a growing global movement to rid the world of the nuclear threat, rein in rising spending on nuclear weapons and bring the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty into force. We must stop passing this problem to succeeding generations; we must each do our part to build a safer, more secure world today.