UACHTARAN NA hEIREANN
PRESIDENT OF IRELAND
Message from the President of Ireland, Michael D Higgins
It is an honour to have this opportunity to express my support for the World Conference against Atomic and Hydrogen Bombs.
Seventy-nine years since the horrendous atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, it remains more important than ever to reiterate the call for a nuclear-weapon free world.
In 1945, the nations of the world pledged to save future generations from the scourge of war and to unite, as one peoples and one world, to live together in peace. Then, as now, we knew that it was only through this promise that we could safeguard our future. It is our duty and our collective obligation to fulfil this promise and ensure the mistakes of the past are not repeated.
How regrettable then that we find ourselves living through a period when militarism has replaced diplomacy, a time of heightened nuclear risk and a dangerous increasing reliance on nuclear rhetoric, as we are witness to a proliferation of crises and unimaginable human cost.
The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, which won the Nobel Prize for Peace in 2017, has told us that the combined spending on nuclear weapons grew by $10.7 billion to $91.4 billion over the last five years, while $387 billion has been spent on nuclear weapons during this time — when one thinks of what could be achieved if such sums were not deferred to preparations for war.
I restate the long-held position of the people of Ireland: nuclear weapons afford us neither security nor safety. The only guarantee of safety from nuclear weapons is their complete elimination.
I pay particular tribute to the hibakusha, who continue to tell their story to ensure the reasons for disarmament remain clear and powerful, saving present and future generations from the horror of these weapons. The testimonies of the hibakusha provide powerful first-hand evidence, of the destructive and long-lasting consequences of the use of nuclear weapons. Any further use of nuclear weapons would result in devastating humanitarian consequences that would have global impact, and no amount of resources could ever provide an adequate humanitarian response to the use of such weapons. This fact only increases the urgency of our task.
We must take concrete steps towards the goal of a world without nuclear weapons. The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons is a clear expression of the international community’s rejection of these weapons and is a crucial step in realising our collective obligation. Ireland will continue to bring the level of ambition expressed in the Treaty across disarmament processes, including the upcoming UN General Assembly First Committee and the third Meeting of States Parties to the TPNW. As in the spirit of this Conference, we pledge to place victims and survivors at the core, fostering an inclusive and cooperative environment.
The World Conference and the strength of the hibakusha underscore the importance of recommitting to our collective endeavour of a nuclear weapon-free world. Now, more than ever, the work of this Conference, grassroots organisations and the international community is crucial to shaping a safer world for generations to come. You may rest assured of Ireland’s continued commitment to this promise.
I wish the World Conference every success in this critical, urgent work.
Michael D. Higgins
Uachtaran na hEireann
President of Ireland
July 2024