UN Talks on Nuclear Arms Ban Unrealistic Without Nuclear-Weapon States - Tokyo

The UN talks on nuclear weapons ban impossible without the participation of the nuclear-weapon states, Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said Tuesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — On December 23, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution to convene negotiations on banning nuclear weapons, and decided the talks will take place in New York on March 27.

"[The talks] not only do not realistically help create a world without nuclear weapons but could also further deepen the rift between nuclear and non-nuclear-weapon states and cause an adverse effect," Kishida told reporters as quoted by Kyodo news agency.

The United States and Russia were among the 35 countries that voted against the resolution and said they did not plan to participate in the upcoming talks on banning nuclear weapons.

Almost 40 countries decided not to participate in the talks, including the United States, France and the United Kingdom, among others.