As delivered

Statement by H.E. Mr. Don Pramudwinai
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Thailand
at the High-level Plenary Meeting of the Assembly to commemorate
and promote the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons
2 October 2020, New York, the United States of America
*****

Mr. President,

Mr. Secretary-General,

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am honoured to join you today at this High-level Plenary Meeting to Commemorate and Promote the “International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons”. Although the COVID-19 pandemic may have forbidden our gathering, we should continue to stand firm and united in our commitment to realising a world free of nuclear weapons.

Since the inception of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in 2017, we have come a long way. We are now very close to reaching the minimum requirement of 50 Parties for the Treaty to enter into force. So let us keep up this momentum and continue to put in collective efforts both to ratify the Treaty and to urge our friends from near and far, who have yet to join, to do so.

It has been 75 years since Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and we all know too well the devastating impact of nuclear weapons.  And yet, the world today is by no means facing lesser danger from nuclear weapons than any time in the past.  Therefore, let us always remind ourselves that international security rests not on our capacity to harm an adversary, but on mutual trust forged between nations; on faith in the peaceful resolution of disputes and conflicts; and on multilateral collaboration.

It is regrettable that the 10th Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons was postponed to next year due to COVID-19. Thailand thus urges all parties concerned to use the time now available to strengthen efforts to advance nuclear disarmament.

Mr. President,

All of us here subscribe to the noble aspiration towards a world free of nuclear weapons; and all of us here have been entrusted with the heavy responsibility of realising this objective. However, for our efforts to be successful, truly meaningful and sustainable, we, the governments must reach out to our people, whether through promoting disarmament education or dialogue. Let us also use the occasion of the “International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons” to do so.

Thank you.

*****