Brussels (Brussels Morning) The five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council – China, Russia, the United States, the United Kingdom and France – issued statements on Monday affirming their agreement that nuclear war should be avoided at all costs.
The five countries stated they consider it is their primary responsibility to avoid war between nuclear-armed nations, and to reduce strategic risks, while at the same time striving to work with all of the world’s countries to create an atmosphere of security.
“We declare there could be no winners in a nuclear war, it should never be initiated”, the Russian-language version of the five countries’ statement declared, while noting that nuclear arms should only serve defensive purposes, for use as deterrents against aggression and to prevent wars.
France also emphasised that the five powers would continue bilateral and multilateral approaches to nuclear arms control, stating that the countries involved have reiterated their determination for nuclear arms control and disarmament.
The joint statement comes amidst rising tensions between Russia and Western countries over potential conflict in Ukraine, as well as spreading concerns about the growth of China’s nuclear arsenal and rising tensions in the Pacific.
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) warned earlier this year that the world’s stockpile of usable nuclear arsenal is growing, as well as the overall number of warheads in global military stockpiles.
The European Parliament called earlier this month for a decrease in nuclear weapons, and for more binding treaties, while expressing its concerns about China’s efforts to modernize and expand its existing nuclear arsenal, including the development of hypersonic nuclear-capable missiles.
