United Nations: We Ban Possession of Nuclear Weapons in All Countries


Now it has approved a ban on the possession of nuclear weapons as though any of those nations possessing them, including North Korea, are going to give them up.

A majority of the world’s countries voted at the United Nations on Friday to adopt a global treaty banning nuclear weapons.

The vote marks the first time in history that a majority of countries moved to approve a binding instrument prohibiting nuclear weapons. In all, 122 nations voted in favor of the treaty, while only one, the Netherlands, voted against it. Singapore abstained.

The treaty is intended to bar countries from developing, testing, manufacturing, acquiring or even possessing any kind of nuclear weapon.

Not part of the treaty negotiations, however, were the world’s nuclear powers, including the United States, France, the United Kingdom and Russia — all permanent members of the U.N. Security Council — who argued that the treaty was unrealistic and that countries like North Korea would not cooperate.

“There is nothing I want more for my family than a world with no nuclear weapons, but we have to be realistic,” U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley said in March when negotiations on the treaty began. “Is there anyone who thinks that North Korea would ban nuclear weapons?”

Here is all you need to know to understand what the UN is about.

The vote, however, was celebrated by arms control groups, who said the treaty was a first real step toward eliminating nuclear arms.

The vote is symbolic and that’s it. The weapons are real. Those who wish to go about collecting and destroying all the worlds’ nuclear weapons can celebrate their symbolic victory in moving toward what would be a noble goal.

But the reality remains, and that’s what counts.

Source: The Hill



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