Nuclear materials trafficking threat to international security — Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari has warned that trafficking in nuclear materials remains a potential threat to international peace and security.

President Buhari, in his video-message to the UN High-level meeting to commemorate and promote the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons on Friday, renewed Nigeria’s commitment to the peaceful uses of nuclear energy.

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The President, who called for the total elimination of nuclear weapons, voiced concern about the ‘‘slow pace’’ of States possessing nuclear weapons in disarming and decommissioning their existing nuclear facilities.

”We are concerned about the slow pace of progress by nuclear-weapon States to accomplish the total elimination of their nuclear arsenals, in accordance with their legal obligations and undertakings under Article VI of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT),” President Buhari said in a statement issued by his spokesman, Femi Adesina.

Buhari, who restated the need for the United Nations to continue engaging Nuclear Weapon States to speed up their efforts in disarming and decommissioning their existing nuclear facilities, said: ”The best approach to avoid damage associated with nuclear materials such as humanitarian crisis, accidents, disasters and criminality is the total elimination of nuclear weapons.”

President Buhari told world leaders at the virtual summit that the universalization of the NPT was dependent upon strict compliance with its three pillars namely, disarmament, non-proliferation and peaceful uses of nuclear energy.

The President, who implored other Member States to ratify the Treaty, noted that Nigeria had played a major role in negotiations leading to the coming into force of the African Nuclear-Weapon-Free-Zone Treaty (Pelindaba Treaty).

Buhari said it was noteworthy that this year marks the 75th Anniversary of the use of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan that terminated the lives of thousands of people with severe long-term damages to the environment.

”The Anniversary is a forceful reminder of the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons which undermine global, national and human security.

”Hence, there is need for all states to comply with applicable international laws and conventions to ensure a world free of nuclear weapons.

”We must, therefore, redouble our efforts to implement the provisions of the Nuclear NPT being the basis of Non-Proliferation Regime.

”This is to enable us achieve our desire for total elimination of nuclear weapons,’’ he said.