International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons 2017 observed globally

26 September: International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons

The International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons was observed across the world on 26 September 2017 with an aim to educate the public and their leaders about the real benefits of eliminating nuclear weapons and the social and economic costs of perpetuating them.

Earlier on 7 July 2017, the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons was adopted with an aim of a world without nuclear weapons. The Treaty was the result of a global campaign focused on the unacceptability of the use of nuclear weapons under any circumstances.

Background
The United General Assembly declared 26 September as the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons in December 2013 through its resolution A/RES/68/32 as a follow-up to the high-level meeting of the General Assembly on nuclear disarmament in September 2013.

The day is observed to enhance public awareness and education about the threat posed to humanity by nuclear weapons and the necessity for their total elimination in order to mobilize international efforts towards achieving the common goal of a weapon.