Wednesday, August 4, 2010

U.N. Chief Seeks Global Nuclear Disarmament Within Lifetime


U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon yesterday said he would seek the elimination of all nuclear weapons before the end of his life, Kyodo News reported (see GSN, July 19).
Addressing whether he wants a nuclear weapon-free world to be achieved within his lifetime, he said, "That's my goal."
Ban also called for the spread of nuclear weapons materials to end "as soon as possible."
The U.N. leader expressed support for a disarmament time line, promoted by the organization Mayors for Peace, that calls for worldwide nuclear disarmament by 2020. He also backed in principle the group's goal of convening an international conference next year to negotiate a global nuclear weapons ban (Kyodo News/Breitbart.com, Aug. 2).
Ban is expected to reaffirm his call for a nuclear weapon free-world during a five-day visit to Japan this week. His visit, set to begin today, would mark the 65th anniversary of the U.S. atomic bomb attacks on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Jiji Press reported (Jiji Press, Aug. 2).
U.S. Ambassador to Japan John Roos is slated Friday to attend a ceremony marking the Hiroshima bombing, the first time an envoy from Washington would take part in a remembrance of the event, Agence France-Presse reported.
Roos would lay a wreath at the ceremony "to express respect for all of the victims of World War II," according to the U.S. State Department (Shingo Ito, Agence France-Presse/Google News, Aug. 3).


No comments: