Humanity appears to have forgotten the nuclear disasters in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which once created a new level of awareness about global peace. The terror brought by the nukes still haunts the residents of the two cities as well as other citizens from different parts of the world. But many fear that the memory is starting to fade away since global leaders are again keen to fortify their security using nuclear deterrence. The menace of nuclear attack is knocking at the door again.

On August 1, 2022, a pandemic-delayed summit was held to review the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, which has been in effect for 50 years and aims to finally achieve a world free of nuclear weapons. The Chief of the UN, Antonio Guterres, realized the perils that could be brought about by the decisions of the global leaders through miscalculation or arrogance. During the summit, he took the rostrum to jog the world leader’s memory about the threat of a nuclear attack. He tried to remind the global leaders that the security they were asking for by using nuclear warheads was a dilemma and rather a false aspiration.

Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned that humanity faces the greatest risk since the Cold War. He asked the nations of the globe to set humanity on a new road toward a nuclear-free future. This is actually a picturization of his concern about nuclear annihilation and a continuation of his actions to ensure nuclear non-proliferation. During his tenure as the Prime Minister of Portugal, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has already been significantly vocal at the UN against nuclear testing in the Pacific.

The UN Chief’s concern should be taken into account with sheer urgency and pre-eminence. According to reports, the United States, the first and only state that has ever used a nuclear weapon in war, spent $44.2 billion on such weapons in 2021, more than the cumulative $38.2 billion spent by the other eight nuclear-armed countries. With $11.7 billion, China came in second in nuclear expenditures, followed by $8.6 billion by Russia. There are 13,000 nuclear weapons around the world at present. States having nuclear weapons often use the nuclear threat as deterrence in times of crisis.

Considering the serious nuclear threat, the concern of the UN Chief is legitimate and timely. Rather this sort of bold step should be taken earlier to stop the proliferation. The Ukraine crisis and the threat from Kremlin again pulled the issue back on the table and the UN Chief has perfectly grabbed the podium to showcase the concern of the world through his brave approach. When a concern has been expressed from this level, the credibility of the concern becomes more significant. Few issues deserve mentioning.

First, the parties who are responsible to bring such grave tension to the surface should be identified. The reckless behaviors of the hegemons should be kept accountable for the current state of instability in the status quo. The tension on the nuclear-powered submarine issue between the United States, Australia, and France witnessed the rise of a new form of apprehension in the region. All this is part of the bigger picture where nuclear threats are used to attain certain goals by states.

Second, standing at a critical juncture of global collective peace and security, the speech of the Chief of the UN is a showcasing of his courageous and bold approach to guarding humanity. When every other state or actor is thinking about their own interest, he thoroughly represents his stance on the side of humanity. It will encourage the world leaders to think about peace when dealing with bilateral or multilateral tensions rather than being egoistic..

Third, the tensions like the cold war period are once more growing. It is a reflection of the proper understanding of world affairs and the security posture of the status quo. The dilemma that nuclear weapons brought to the world should be abolished by the total demolition of the nukes.

Fourth, his concerns are empowering the stance of the actors who are trying to restrict and demolish the proliferation of nuclear weapons. He urged the world to renew a push toward eliminating all such weapons.

Fifth, in his words, states are pursuing their “False Security” through the armament process and this in the end is not ensuring humanity’s security because of the underlying devastating nature of the nukes.

Sixth, Antonio Guterres shows his global leadership by expressing the truth to the more than seven billion people in the world. His messages were clear and straightforward. The clarity his speech bears fascinates the peace seekers the most.

Moreover, the Secretary-General has suggested five areas of actions to accomplish the goals. Reinforcement and reaffirmation of the 77-year-old norms against the use of nuclear weapons are first on the list. He was also keen to imply more on dialogue and transparency with trust and mutual respect. To him, the elimination of nuclear weapons is more effective than a guarantee of not using those. He purposefully urged reinvigorating and resourcing mutual agreement and frameworks of disarmament and non-proliferation among states for attaining peace. With a concrete action area, other actors could comprehend the wider picture of what they are attempting to accomplish, thus becoming more determined and self-assured when they comprehend the wider picture of what they are attempting to accomplish.

The experience of the UN chief in the field should also be taken into account. When he was Prime Minister of Portugal, he instructed the mission of Portugal to the UN to vote for the first time against the resumption of nuclear testing in the Pacific. He realized the terror of the nukes back in the days when even successive Portuguese regimes abstained from voting. He fought against the tide back in the days, now the world needs this gesture more than ever.

Inclusivity is another fascinating posture he showed in his critically important speech. ‘From the Middle East and the Korean Peninsula’ to the Ukraine war- he mentioned the regions where tensions were more prone to be outbroken.

And the most significant part of his oration was the endorsement of cooperation and collaboration. He simply said, “We need to strengthen all avenues of dialogue and transparency. Peace cannot take hold in an absence of trust and mutual respect.” Moreover, he delineated the significance of multilateral agreements and frameworks for disarmament and non-proliferation. Compromise, renewed commitment, and real, good faith negotiations, and shared obligation– are the expressions used by him during his speech which again directs to his profound advocacy for cooperation and collaboration. Without these nothing of the whole process can be achieved.

Ultimately, the UN Chief’s active participation in denuclearization will portray his true compulsion of achieving peace through demolishing nuclear weapons. His enthusiasm for peace will inspire others to join him on the trip to nuclear non-proliferation. All of these are an indication of new hope for peace and increased government-to-government communication which leads to a trustworthy environment where the nukes will be of no use. And that will be the end of the concern about nuclear annihilation of the UN chief and humanity in a nutshell as well.