AFRICAN GROUP STATEMENT BY H.E. MR. MOHAMED DABO AT THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY ON COMMEMORATING & PROMOTING THE INTERNATIONAL DAY AGAINST NUCLEAR TESTS

  Delivered by H.E. Mohamed Dabo

Permanent Representative of Guinea to the United Nations

3rd September 2025

Mr. President,

1.        I have the honour to speak on behalf of the African Group.

2.        The African Group expresses appreciation to the President of the General Assembly for convening this meeting and to the Secretary-General of the United Nations for his message and valuable support towards nuclear disarmament.

3.        The fact that this year marks 80 years since the first nuclear weapons were tested, and the first nuclear detonation occurred in Hiroshima and Nagasaki is a stark reminder of the existential threat posed by the use and testing of nuclear weapons not only to humanity but international peace and security.  The Group is concerned that nuclear tests have continued, and that more than 2000 tests have been conducted worldwide. As we convene here today, we should reaffirm our determination to raising awareness and preventing the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of the use and testing of nuclear weapons. An end to nuclear tests is a necessary measure pending the total elimination of nuclear weapons.

Mr. President,

4.        The total elimination of nuclear weapons remains the only absolute guarantee against their use or threat of use. In this context, the Group reiterates that the catastrophic humanitarian consequences and risks associated with nuclear weapons underpin the moral and ethical imperatives for nuclear disarmament and the urgency of achieving and maintaining a nuclear-weapon-free world. The Group wishes to emphasize humanitarian considerations in the context of all deliberations on nuclear weapons, particularly its serious concern over the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of the use or detonation of nuclear weapons, either by accident or as a deliberate action. We call on all States, particularly nuclear-armed States, to take into consideration the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of the use and testing of nuclear  weapons on human health, the environment and vital economic resources among others, and to take necessary measures aimed at dismantling and renouncing these weapons.

5.        The Group supports the principle of complete nuclear disarmament as the utmost prerequisite for maintaining international peace and security. It is in this spirit that we recall the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) as well as the entry into force of the landmark Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) which seeks to advance nuclear disarmament and to comprehensively prohibit nuclear weapons tests. In this regard, the Group wishes to urge nuclear armed States and those under the so-called “nuclear umbrella”, to seize the opportunity to sign and ratify the TPNW at an early date, as well as pursue the goal of a nuclear weapons-free world.   

6.        The Group expresses deep concern about the rapid advancement of technology, particularly in the field of Artificial Intelligence and the associated risks of automating decision-making processes relayed to nuclear testing, which could lead to irreversible decision.

Mr. President,

7.         The African Group supports the goals of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), which seeks a comprehensive ban on nuclear tests with all their attendant humanitarian and environmental ramifications, as well as to cease all vertical and horizontal proliferation of nuclear weapons.

8.        The Group takes note of the Conference on Facilitating Entry into Force of the CTBT (Article XIV Conference) during the High-Level week of the 78^th Session of the General Assembly and looks forward to the upcoming Conference to be held later this month in New York.

9.        The Group wishes to reiterate the importance of achieving universal adherence to the CTBT taking into consideration the special responsibilities of armed States and calls upon Annex 2 States to sign and ratify without further delay and without preconditions. The Group believes that the CTBT offers hope of halting further development or proliferation of nuclear weapons, thereby contributing to the goal of nuclear disarmament.

10.      In conclusion Mr. President, the African Group, once again calls on all States to work persistently to facilitate the expeditious entry into force of the CTBT to fulfil the goals and objectives of a nuclear-weapons-free world, taking into account the special responsibility of the nuclear-armed States in this regard.

I thank you.