MEXICO ATTENDS AN INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON THE HUMANITARIAN IMPACT OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS

• Continuing its diplomatic tradition regarding disarmament, Mexico announced that it will host a conference to follow up on this issue.

• Mexico reaffirms that the only guarantee against the use of nuclear weapons is their total elimination and prohibition under a strict international verification system.

Mexico attended the international conference on the humanitarian impact of nuclear weapons held in Oslo on March 4-5, convened by the Norwegian government. The conference provided a unique opportunity to address the issue of nuclear weapons with a focus on human security and the effects of nuclear weapons on the population, health, environment and food security.

The meeting provided, for the first time, a platform for sharing factual and technical information on the humanitarian consequences of a nuclear explosion, and examining its effects on health, climate change, security and development. The participants heard the testimonies of survivors affected by nuclear radiation about the tragedy and human suffering caused by nuclear weapons and their testing. By sharing national experiences and response capabilities, the participants unanimously concluded that there is no type of preparation that can protect the population of any city from the humanitarian catastrophe of a nuclear explosion.

The experts demonstrated that a nuclear weapon of any type and size, detonated in a small or large town, intentionally or accidentally, would have a devastating effect at the moment of detonation as well as in the long term, throughout the region or even on a global scope.

The Oslo Conference brought together experts from 127 countries in all regions of the world, as well as representatives from specialized United Nations agencies and programs, such as the United Nations Development Program and the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, as well as the International Committee of Red Cross and civil society organizations.

The Mexican delegation to the conference was headed by the Permanent Representative to the International Organizations in Geneva, Ambassador Juan Jose Gomez Camacho, and Mexican experts from the Defense and Foreign Ministries, the Civil Protection Office and the National Commission for Nuclear Safety and Safeguards.

Mexico reiterates that the only guarantee against the use of and damage caused by nuclear weapons is their total elimination. The use or threat of use of nuclear weapons would go against international law and the UN Charter. For Mexico, the use of nuclear weapons should be considered a war crime. Mexico hopes that the discussion in Oslo will contribute to making progress in this direction and prevent nuclear weapons from being used again and causing a catastrophic humanitarian crisis anywhere in the world. Mexico announced it will convene a follow-up conference on this topic, with the date to be determined.

Nuclear weapons are the devices or instruments of war with the greatest capacity to destroy all life on Earth and its structure in a relatively short time. They have an indiscriminate destructive capacity of such magnitude as to threaten the survival of humanity as a whole. There are about 20,000 nuclear bombs in the world. These weapons have been used twice in history (Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945). According to the International Committee of the Red Cross, no health service would be able to serve the hundreds of thousands of people affected by nuclear explosions or by the radiation they emitted.