KEY POINTS

• Guterres warned that nuclear threat is accelerating.

• UN launched a scientific panel on nuclear risks.

• Disarmament was called the foundation of peace.

The United Nations on Friday used its annual gathering on nuclear disarmament to deliver a stark message.

Secretary-General António Guterres warned that the threat of nuclear conflict is not receding. It is accelerating and evolving.

Nuclear threat accelerates despite past promises

The remarks, delivered on Guterres’ behalf by Chief de Cabinet Courtenay Rattray, came during the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons in New York. The event, observed each Sept. 26, serves as a reminder of the devastation caused by the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and as a platform for states to recommit to disarmament.

Rattray invoked the hibakusha, survivors of those bombings, who turned their trauma into a lifelong appeal for peace. Eight decades on, he said, the world risks “sleepwalking” into a more dangerous nuclear arms race. Advances in cyberspace, hypersonic missiles, deep-sea drones, and outer space technologies have eliminated the margin for error. Each breakthrough adds new layers of risk for miscalculation and escalation.

“This is not just a crisis of weapons,” Rattray said. “It is a crisis of memory, responsibility, and courage.”

Nuclear disarmament as foundation for peace

To address these emerging dangers, the UN announced the creation of an independent scientific panel tasked with assessing the consequences of nuclear war. The findings are expected to ground the global response in evidence, not rhetoric.

Rattray stressed that nuclear disarmament cannot wait for ideal conditions. The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty already binds states to act, he said, and commitments must be honored. “Disarmament is not the reward for peace. It is the foundation of peace.”

According to Punch, the UN urged nuclear states to return to dialogue, strengthen confidence-building measures, and ensure that nuclear weapons remain under human control rather than artificial intelligence systems. Guterres’ message underscored that disarmament is not optional. It is central to preventing catastrophe.