Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Holy See’s Secretary of State, addressed participants in a UN meeting on the 25th anniversary of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT).
The treaty, ratified by 175 nations, will not enter into force until eight additional nations, including China and the United States, ratify it.
“The Holy See deplores any resumption of testing and calls upon all States to maintain adherence to the zero-yield moratorium,” said Cardinal Parolin. “As global tensions rise and we hear rhetoric threatening the use of nuclear weapons, it is more crucial than ever to bring the CTBT into force.”
Cardinal Parolin also called on nations that rely on nuclear deterrence to assist “those who have suffered due to radioactivity released by nuclear testing, which has a disproportionate impact on women, girls, and the unborn and has contaminated environments across the world.”
“While these States do not currently have a legal responsibility to contribute to such efforts, they have [a] moral obligation to redress the harms inflicted by nuclear testing,” he added.
