Nuclear States Refuse to Attend Vienna Meeting to Eliminate Weapons of Mass Destruction

The head of the Austrian Diplomatic Conference, Alexander Kment, expressed the danger of the situation returning to the way it was in the 1950s and 1960s, with more actors involved.

Since the end of Cold War, the danger of  nuclear escalation has never been as present as it is today.

With these words, Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg opened a meeting yesterday in Vienna on the importance of disarming nuclear weapons, whose use has increased against the backdrop of the Ukrainian war, adding that “the sword of Damocles is approaching us.”

Diplomats, activists, and experts are meeting from yesterday (Tuesday) until tomorrow (Thursday) to activate the document that has so far been ratified by 65 countries (of the 86 signatories) against the backdrop of the Russian threat. The document came into force for the first time at the beginning of 2021.

The complete, irreversible, and verifiable elimination of nuclear weapons is the ultimate goal of signatories to the International Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) which “includes innovative topics such as victim consideration who exposed to higher doses of radiation during nuclear tests.”