disarmament

Michael Spies, Political Affairs Officer at the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA), at UN News studios on 29 October 2018.
UN News/Elizabeth Scaffidi

‘International tensions’ between US-Russia, remain central to UN disarmament efforts

5 November 2018
Interviews

Disarmament affairs are more of a marathon than a sprint, and each year towards the end of October, the UN General Assembly’s First Committee meets to discuss the issue of ridding the world of weapons.  This year, in an interview with UN News, in-house disarmament guru Michael Spies (UNODA) spelled out the dangerous effect in play of rising “international tensions between the United States and Russia”. 

Audio -
7'51"
Renata Dwan, Director of the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR), at UN News studios in UN Headquarters in New York. 24 October 2018.
UN News/Paulina Greer

PODCAST: Disarm, for ‘the future of our planet’

26 October 2018
The Lid is On

Disarmament is too important to be left to the experts. That’s the view of Renata Dwan, Director of the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR), who says young people and civil society have a vital role to play in arms control, at this turbulent time in world history. For our latest Lid Is On podcast Ms. Dwan sat down with UN News’s Paulina Greer.

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16'59"
Mary Wareham, Advocacy Director of the Arms Division of Human Rights Watch and ban policy editor of the Cluster Munition Monitor 2018 report, speaks at a press conference to launch the report, United Nations Office at Geneva, 30 August 2018.
UN News/Daniel Johnson

Cluster munitions convention is working despite ongoing use in conflicts, says treaty monitor

31 August 2018
Interviews

Four countries have completely destroyed their stockpiles of cluster munitions since 2017, according to a report by a leading coalition seeking a global ban on the weapons in line with the international convention governing their use. However, Mary Wareham, one of the editors of Cluster Munition Monitor 2018, tells UN News that these weapons are still claiming victims.

Audio -
5'10"
Signing ceremony at UN Headquarters in New York for the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, 20 September 2017.
UN Photo/Paulo Filgueiras

UN chief welcomes first anniversary of landmark treaty banning nuclear weapons

7 July 2018
Peace and Security

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Saturday welcomed the first anniversary of the adoption of the milestone Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).

Sculpture depicting St. George slaying the dragon. The dragon is created from fragments of Soviet SS-20 and United States Pershing nuclear missiles.
UN Photo/Milton Grant

Nuclear non-proliferation treaty an ‘essential pillar’ of international peace, says UN chief

1 July 2018
Peace and Security

On the 50th anniversary of the opening for signature of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres urged all State parties to ensure the Treaty’s continued strength and importance in the years ahead.

During the war, many Sierra Leoneans fled to Guinea where they became refugees.
UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe

Twenty-year-old disarmament process in Sierra Leone 'miraculous'

25 May 2018
UN and Africa

For this latest UN and Africa podcast, as the UN chief António Guterres unveils a new disarmament agenda, we’ll hear from a former UN staff member who watched the West African country rid itself of the menace of deadly battlefield weapons.

Audio -
15'30"
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres presents his agenda for disarmament "Securing Our Common Future" at Université de Genève - Uni Dufour.
UN Photo/Jean-Marc Ferré

‘Frontier technology’ key element of new UN disarmament agenda

25 May 2018
The Lid is On

It’s time for the United Nations to play a bigger role in disarmament, according to UN chief António Guterres, calling for concrete, practical actions to promote peaceful conflict resolution. Among those actions is to maximize the benefits of “frontier technology”. Daniel Johnson discusses the various ways that the UN is looking to incorporate such technology in its disarmament agenda.

Audio -
7'37"
UN Secretary-General António Guterres speaks at the University of Geneva, launching his Agenda for Disarmament, on 24 May 2018.
UN Photo/Jean-Marc Ferré

UN chief launches new disarmament agenda ‘to secure our world and our future’

24 May 2018
Peace and Security

The United Nations chief announced a bold new vision for global disarmament on Thursday, to help eliminate nuclear arsenals and other deadly weapons from a world that is just “one mechanical, electronic and human error away” from destruction.

International Space Station (2008).
NASA

UN Disarmament Commission debates ways to prevent arms race in outer space

2 April 2018
Peace and Security

Despite the deteriorating security situation, there are some signs of progress in the field of disarmament, such as the intention of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) and the United States to hold summit talks, a senior United Nations official said Monday.

High Level Segment of the Conference on Disarmament, Palais de Nations, Geneva.
UN Photo/Elma Okic

In Geneva, UN chief urges new push to free world from nuclear weapons

26 February 2018
Peace and Security

Warning that nuclear weapons pose catastrophic risks to human life and the environment, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Monday called on the international community to make a reinvigorated push to rid the world of such weapons.