New York, October 10, 2018. The Permanent Representative of Cuba to the United Nations, Ambassador Anayansi Rodríguez Camejo, expressed in the debate of the First Committee of the UN, the island's concern about the proliferation and development of nuclear weapons. She reiterated, once again, Cuba's support for the prohibition and total elimination of weapons of mass destruction, as the only effective guarantee to avoid their acquisition and use, even by terrorists; as well as the rejection of the use of any weapon of mass destruction by any actor and under any circumstance.
The diplomat also stated the national position against the current military stances based on nuclear deterrence. She recognized as dangerous the fact that the nuclear-weapon States have strengthened the role of these weapons in their military doctrines and have reduced the threshold to consider the use of them, even in response to so-called "non-nuclear strategic threats". This, she added, is unjustifiable and contrary to the obligations assumed under the Non-Proliferation Treaty. She also highlighted Cuba's support for the Secretary General's Disarmament Agenda to promote the goal of nuclear disarmament and for the holding of the High-Level Meeting to commemorate and promote the "International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons".
In her statement, Rodríguez Camejo also made reference to topics included in the agenda of the First Committee of the UN, namely the use of chemical, biological and other toxin weapons. She rejected the selective, non-transparent and politically motivated approaches to the application of instruments related to these weapons; mainly, any distorted interpretation of the Chemical Weapons Convention and the creation of mechanisms and procedures outside its scope.
The ambassador also reiterated Cuba's commitment to continue implementing the United Nations Program of Action to prevent, combat and eradicate the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons in all its aspects. She stressed that in an international context, characterized by the increase of bellicose and aggressive rhetoric, the use and threat of the use of force and the imposition of sanctions and unilateral coercive measures, the high world military expenditure is cause for concern, distrust and animosity. She indicated that the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons is an international scourge that, on a different scale, affects most of the regions and countries of the world.
Permanent Mission of Cuba to the United Nations