By Fortune Abang
The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organisation (CTBTO) has reiterated the need for stronger global commitment to sustaining efforts aimed at ending nuclear weapons testing.
The Executive Secretary of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organisation (CTBTO), Mr Robert Floyd, said this in a statement issued by the organisation’s Senior Public Information Officer, Ms Sanam Shantyaei, on Wednesday.
The statement was issued ahead of the commemoration of the 2026 International Day Against Nuclear Tests (IDANT), observed annually on Aug. 29.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the UN General Assembly, at its 64th Session on Dec. 2, 2009, unanimously proclaimed the day to raise awareness and educate the public on the effects of nuclear weapon test explosions.
The resolution also promotes the prohibition of nuclear testing as one of the means of achieving the goal of a nuclear-weapon-free world.
Floyd emphasised that nuclear weapons were not a challenge any single country could address alone, noting that their consequences would extend beyond national borders.
He said efforts should be intensified to ensure the entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) and preserve its place within the international security architecture.
In this regard, he appealed to states whose ratification was required for the Treaty to enter into force to act without delay and complete the necessary processes.
“A world free from nuclear testing cannot be built in piecemeal; it depends on the shared commitment and willingness of every state.
“This includes those that possess nuclear weapons to sustain the systems that make trust between them possible,” Floyd said.
He observed that some governments had recently spoken more openly about the possibility of resuming nuclear testing and described the trend as a serious concern.
Floyd also called for sustained political and financial support for the CTBT verification regime to enable the organisation and its member states to work more effectively.
According to him, dialogue, transparency and practical confidence-building measures remain essential tools for advancing global peace and security.
The executive secretary said that the CTBT had been open for signature for nearly 30 years and that 2026 also marked 35 years since the closure of the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site.
“None of this is theoretical. The agreement and infrastructure already exist, and what they have achieved so far is proof of what is possible when they are taken seriously.
“The last 30 years were not inevitable, neither are the next 30. That is not a warning; it is an invitation to every government still weighing what kind of world it wants to leave behind,” he said.
Floyd expressed concern that the risks of nuclear war did not arise from a single decision but accumulated over time through repeated testing and arms development.
He said every nuclear weapon test left lasting scars on land and water, with some communities near test sites bearing the consequences for generations.
“IDANT exists because those dangers remain part of our shared history and governments still face the same choice every year,” he added.
Floyd expressed confidence in the International Monitoring System (IMS) established under the Treaty’s verification regime, saying it could detect explosions equivalent to 500 tonnes of TNT.
According to him, this is roughly three per cent of the explosive yield of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima in 1945.
NAN reports that the CTBTO’s 179 ratifying states continue to support efforts toward the Treaty’s entry into force and the completion of the International Monitoring System.
The IMS consists of 337 monitoring facilities worldwide when fully completed and is designed to detect any nuclear explosion anywhere on Earth.
The system is more than 90 per cent complete, with 309 certified facilities currently transmitting data around the clock to CTBTO headquarters in Vienna.
The monitoring network is designed to ensure that no nuclear explosion escapes detection, thereby strengthening global security and confidence in nuclear non-proliferation efforts. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)
Edited by Abiemwense Moru