On September 26, Archbishop Bernardito Auza, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the UN, gave an intervention during the High-level plenary meeting to commemorate and promote The International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons.

In his statement, Archbishop Auza said that the Holy See signed and ratified the Treaty of the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons last week (Sept 20) because the Treaty is a sign of hope that one day the world will be free from nuclear weapons and therefore more peaceful and stable. It is a significant step toward complete nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament. He mentioned Pope Francis’ tweet this morning to “commit ourselves to a world without nuclear weapons” and said that nuclear disarmament can be more effectively realized if it is accompanied by equally determined efforts toward general and complete disarmament. He lamented the slow pace of the progress of the entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty and encouraged States to ratify it. Finally, he urged governments to consider reallocating a sizable portion of their savings from disarmament to development.

His statement can be found here.