The five Non-Proliferation Treaty nuclear weapons states, or the P5, have wrapped up their conference in Beijing with a joint statement reaffirming their commitment towards complete nuclear disarmament. Heads of the P5 delegation met the press in a public event on Tuesday afternoon.

The P5 delegation reaffirmed the essential role of the NPT in mitigating the threat of nuclear weapons.

Heads of the delegation stressed the need to continue to enhance transparency and trust, so as to further the three pillars of the NPT, namely non-proliferation, the peaceful use of nuclear energy, and disarmament.

China played host to the P5 meeting for the first time.

Foreign ministry officials outlined the progress during the one and a half day discussion.

The world's combined inventory of nuclear warheads is roughly estimated at over 17,000. Reducing the existential threat is a grave and urgent challenge. The majority of nuclear warheads exist in the United States and Russia.

The US under secretary of state highlighted the progress being made in reducing that number, including an agreement with Russia to downgrade stockpiles of highly enriched uranium.

China has adhered to the policy of no-first-use of nuclear weapons at any time or under any circumstances, and also commits to a policy of no-use against non nuclear states. Analysts say sticking to a policy of no first use could be a substantive step towards disarmament.

The path to zero cannot be reached quickly. But Pan said that the Beijing meeting is one of many that provide a favourable environment where different countries can talk and work together.

Eliminating the threat of nuclear weapons is a major challenge for countries around the world. The P5 meeting this year reiterated its commitment to complete nuclear disarmament. But achieving the goal will take patience and persistence.

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)