Per statements from China’s foreign ministry’s arms control department, negotiations for a treaty on no-first-use of nuclear weapons should involve states with the largest arsenals.
Sun Xiaobo, the director general of the department, stressed nuclear states’ duty to maintain their “special and priority responsibilities” in nuclear disarmament as defined by the U.N. Conference on Disarmament, aiming to prevent nuclear war. Xinhua reported the statements on Wednesday.
During Monday’s weekly meeting in Geneva, Sun proposed establishing a roadmap for an international legal instrument to safeguard non-nuclear-weapon states from nuclear threats, as reported.
Sun emphasized,
“Nuclear-weapon states should negotiate a treaty on no-first-use of nuclear weapons or make a political statement,” noting China and India’s adherence to this policy while Russia and the United States hold the largest arsenals.
It also advocated for a universal, non-discriminatory non-proliferation export control regime to address global security challenges and enhance compliance in biochemistry, aiming to uphold arms control treaty integrity.
Furthermore, Sun urged the U.N. disarmament forum to address emerging scientific and technological challenges like artificial intelligence, outer space, and cyber threats.
He characterized the international strategic security landscape as facing new challenges, citing instances where countries with significant military power allegedly breached treaties in pursuit of dominance, as reported.
