2026 High-Level Segment of the Conference on Disarmament, delivered by Minister Ronald Lamola, at the Palais des Nations, in Geneva, Switzerland
Mr President, Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates,
South Africa congratulates you on assuming the Presidency of the Conference on Disarmament (CD), and we assure you of our full support as you guide the Conference at this critical moment. I am honoured to once again address the High-Level Segment of the Conference on Disarmament.
We meet at a moment of compounding crises. In the last 12 months we have seen the very notion of international security and collective security challenged by the weakening of international law and then erosion of the multilateral system of global governance. Conflicts across the globe inflict immense civilian suffering while international humanitarian and human rights law is violated with impunity. Adding to this instability, is that nuclear weapons are resurgent in military planning and the security doctrines of many states. Modernisation of nuclear weapons technology accelerates, and rhetoric once considered reckless is now routine, undermining past commitments and widening the gap between promise and practice.
On 5 February 2026, the central limits of the New START Treaty expired with no successor arrangement in place. For the first time in more than a decade, there are no legally binding risk reduction constraints on the world’s two largest possessors of nuclear arsenals. This is not simply a bilateral setback, but a setback on transparency on stockpiles, which compounds global uncertainty, accelerates strategic instability, and heightens the risk of miscalculation for all regions of the world.
At a time when the world urgently needs strengthened norms and principles, we instead witness a retreat from multilateral commitments, the weakening of key treaties and institutions, and unprecedented growth in global military spending. The contradiction is stark as vast resources are allocated to expanding armament capabilities while millions continue to suffer from poverty, inequality and underdevelopment. The imbalance between military expenditures and the under investment in peace, resilience and development should concern every member of this Conference, as this undermines not only security, but the credibility of institutions built to preserve peace.
Excellencies, distinguished delegates,
This year’s multilateral disarmament calendar underscores the need for urgency and coherence. The Eleventh Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) will convene at the end of April in New York. Notably, later this year, South Africa will preside over the first Review Conference of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW). This treaty was negotiated in an inclusive multilateral process and adopted successfully by the General Assembly demonstrating a fundamental step towards the complete, verifiable, and irreversible elimination of nuclear weapons needed for achieving a world free of nuclear weapons.
I also take this opportunity to encourage non-state parties to the TPNW to observe the discussions, which provide an opportunity to share perspectives and develop common understanding on how to create a path to a nuclear free world.
These conferences must transcend routine diplomacy and should be viewed as legitimacy tests at a moment when the disarmament architecture is demonstrably being undermined. These pivotal moments demand that all States move beyond rhetoric towards concrete actions to implement their obligations thus demonstrating meaningful leadership, coherence, and consistency.
Mr President, Excellencies, distinguished delegates,
South Africa remains a principled and consistent advocate for disarmament, non-proliferation and arms control. We firmly believe in a world free from the threat of nuclear weapons. No State should claim the right to possess weapons that place humanity and the environment at such existential risk. Nuclear weapons do not provide security, they threaten it. Their total and irreversible elimination remains the only credible path to lasting global peace.
All nuclear weapon States must honour their unequivocal commitments under the NPT and take urgent, concrete steps towards disarmament. States that depend on nuclear umbrellas or doctrines that place strategic value on nuclear arsenals must reconsider these positions, as they only fuel insecurity and undermine the global non-proliferation regime.
Mr President, Excellencies, distinguished delegates,
The vast majority of African States have chosen to live on a Continent free of nuclear weapons by signing the Treaty of Pelindaba, the African nuclear weapons free zone treaty. South Africa’s own unique history of voluntarily renouncing nuclear weapons is often raised in today’s challenging security context. Yet we remain confident that our choices were both morally and strategically correct. True security does not lie in reliance on weapons of mass destruction but in principled commitment to peace, diplomacy and multilateralism.
But an uncomfortable question remains, if South Africa could dismantle its nuclear arsenal despite uncertainties, why do some States insist that nuclear weapons are indispensable for their security, while expecting others to remain nuclear weapon free? Such contradictions erode the credibility of the global disarmament architecture and reinforce perceptions of double standards.
If we are truly committed to global peace, we must cultivate a culture of negotiation, compromise, and collective responsibility. This is precisely why the Conference on Disarmament exists. Yet the Conference remains paralysed for more than thirty years. Once again, we enter a year without a programme of work, nor agreement on a decision of work. The inability to advance on this critical matter demonstrates that this paralysis is not technical but political. It reflects a profound lack of political will.
At a time when the UN is cutting back to stay solvent, when arrears and delayed contributions threaten core operations, while the question on whether multilateralism can deliver lingers, the Conference on Disarmament must show that it can negotiate again.
We therefore urge all delegations to demonstrate flexibility, engage in good faith, and put aside narrow national interests. Rhetoric must now give way to action. The world cannot afford more years of stagnation; the risks are simply too great.
Mr President, Excellencies, distinguished delegates,
The Conference on Disarmament must continue to work towards a democratic and stable multilateral system that can address emerging challenges to international peace and security, including emerging technologies in compliance with International Humanitarian Law. South Africa stands ready to work with all delegations, across regions and groupings on a practical Programme of Work. We will engage constructively with all, including States possessing nuclear weapons, to find mutually reinforcing steps that stabilise the near term and enable deeper reductions in the medium term.
South Africa reiterates its strong support for inclusive multilateralism. Disarmament affects all States, and therefore all States, UN Members and Observers must be able to participate meaningfully in the work of this Conference. In this regard we welcome the participation of the eighteen non-member States in the Conference on Disarmament this year. We reiterate our call for a Conference on Disarmament that is more representative and inclusive, which calls for the successful resolution of the matter regarding the requests for observer status and the expansion of membership.
South Africa remains committed to working with all delegations to ensure that this Conference fulfils its mandate and returns to genuine, substantive negotiations. We owe it to the people of the world to break the deadlock and take meaningful steps toward a safer, more peaceful future and a world without nuclear weapons.
Thank you.
