UN Chief Warns of Nuclear Test Risks, Cautions Against ‘Playing with Fire’
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres issued a stark warning amid rising geopolitical tensions, urging world leaders to “stop playing with fire” and take nuclear threats, particularly the risk of renewed nuclear testing, seriously.
He emphasized the devastating consequences of the more than 2,000 nuclear tests conducted over the past 80 years, which have caused widespread displacement, land and ocean contamination, and long-lasting health crises affecting multiple generations.
Guterres stressed that nuclear testing remained a grave danger amid rising geopolitical tensions.
“We must never forget the horrific legacy of over 2,000 nuclear tests,” he said.
“The world cannot accept this,” the Secretary-General stressed.
The UN boss called for urgent ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT)—adopted in 1996 but not yet in force because key states have not ratified it. He underscored that “now is the time to silence the bombs before they speak again”.
The warning comes as the international community marks 80 years since the first nuclear test, which occurred on July 16, 1945, in New Mexico.
Guterres insisted that the world must not accept the horrific legacy of nuclear testing and must strive toward a nuclear-weapon-free future
