The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) held a high-level meeting on Friday to commemorate and advance the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons, calling on member states to faithfully implement relevant treaties and promote the process of nuclear disarmament.

In his address, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that the world nowadays faces a more complex, unpredictable and dangerous nuclear arms race, with escalating risks of conflict and miscalculation.

Nuclear disarmament is the foundation of peace, Guterres said, urging nuclear-armed countries to resume dialogue and work toward the total elimination of nuclear weapons.

Annalena Baerbock, president of the 80th session of the UNGA, said at the meeting that the UN has effective frameworks for reducing nuclear risks, such as the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty.

Baerbock added that every member state, including nuclear-armed countries, must faithfully implement these treaties.

Geng Shuang, China's deputy permanent representative to the UN, stated in his speech that nuclear weapons pose a significant security threat to countries worldwide.

The complete prohibition and thorough destruction of nuclear weapons, with the ultimate goal of establishing a world free of nuclear weapons, align with the common interests of all humanity, Geng said.

Speaking of the complex and profound evolution of the international security landscape, ongoing geopolitical conflicts and unprecedented challenges to the nuclear disarmament process, Geng said the risks of a nuclear arms race and nuclear conflict are escalating.

The international community must work together to advance nuclear disarmament, prevent nuclear proliferation and reduce nuclear risks, Geng added.

In December 2013, the UNGA adopted a resolution designating September 26 as the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons, aiming to raise awareness of the threat nuclear weapons pose to humanity and the necessity of their complete elimination.

(Cover: Logo of the UN at the UN headquarters in New York, U.S., September 25, 2025. /VCG)