UN Secretary-General António Guterres urged nuclear-weapon countries to uphold their commitment not to be the first to use their nuclear arsenals, warning that the nuclear arms race has restarted amid rising international tensions.

“This is the moment … to ask the nuclear-armed countries to commit to the principle of non-first-use and to commit to not use and not threaten the non-nuclear countries,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said at a news conference in Tokyo.

According to him, any attack on the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant is suicide. He also noted that he fully supported the International Atomic Energy Agency in their efforts to stabilize the plant and gain access to the facility in order to fulfill their mandate.

Guterres said that after decades of efforts towards nuclear disarmament, the world is now moving backwards, noting that the world already has 13,000 nuclear bombs and huge investments in modernizing nuclear arsenals. The billions that are being used in this arms race should be used to fight climate change, fight poverty, meet the needs of the international community, he said, adding that he would visit Mongolia and South Korea to discuss ways to solve the nuclear problem. developments in North Korea.

At a time when geopolitical tensions are rising and the nuclear threat is back in the spotlight, Japan's strong and consistent voice for the world is more important than ever, Guterres said, urging Japan to use its unique position as the only country in the world to be hit by a nuclear attack to act as a bridge builder and peacemaker to strengthen global cooperation, trust and solidarity.