Ambassador Ernesto Soberón Guzmán, Permanent Representative of Cuba to the United Nations, participated in the General Debate of the III Preparatory Committee for the XI Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT).
In this scenario, he reaffirmed Cuba's position in favor of nuclear disarmament and the definitive elimination of nuclear weapons. At the same time, it signed the Uganda Declaration on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and the working documents promoted by this group.
On the eighth anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the United States, the Cuban Ambassador regretted that despite the devastating lessons of these events, not enough awareness has been generated to eliminate all nuclear weapons from the planet. "As long as these weapons and the doctrines that seek to justify their possession persist, the risk of their proliferation and use will remain latent," he said. In addition, he stressed that their total elimination is the only absolute guarantee against the use and threat of use of nuclear weapons.
He also denounced the fact that 55 years after the entry into force of the NPT, Article VI on nuclear disarmament remains unfulfilled. He criticized the imbalance between the pillars of the NPT and the non-fulfillment of commitments made at previous Review Conferences, such as the 1995, 2000 and 2010 Agreements.
Soberón Guzmán said that Cuba, as a State Party to the NPT, the Treaty of Tlatelolco, and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, will continue to work tirelessly for a world free of nuclear weapons. He reaffirmed the Island's commitment to the Proclamation of Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace, which reaffirms the priority that our region gives to nuclear disarmament.
He also urged all States that have not yet done so to accede to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), since its universalization would effectively contribute to nuclear disarmament by establishing a categorical prohibition of nuclear weapons in all circumstances.
Finally, he called for concrete, measurable and time-bound actions to move towards a world free of nuclear weapons.
Permanent Mission of Cuba to the United Nations