A/RES/78/240 GA

United Nations A/RES/78/240 General Assembly Distr.: General 28 December 2023 23-26249 (E) 100124 *2326249* Seventy-eighth session Agenda item 99 General and complete disarmament Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 22 December 2023 [on the report of the First Committee (A/78/409, para. 89)] 78/240. Addressing the legacy of nuclear weapons: providing victim assistance and environmental remediation to Member States affected by the use or testing of nuclear weapons The General Assembly, Expressing deep concern that more than 2,000 nuclear explosive tests have been conducted worldwide, including in non-self-governing territories, Recognizing that the consequences of the use and testing of nuclear weapons transcend national borders, contaminate environments, hamper socioeconomic development, threaten food security, harm the health of current and future generations, and recalling resolution 77/53 of 7 December 2022 in this regard, Acknowledging that the consequences of the use and testing of nuclear weapons and other nuclear explosive devices include not only physical harms but also harms to mental health, such as through post-traumatic stress disorders and other forms of trauma, as well as the disruption of cultural practices and displacement on a long- term or permanent basis of communities of affected Member States, Deploring the unacceptable suffering of and harm caused to the people affected by the use of nuclear weapons (hibakusha), as well as the victims of the testing of nuclear weapons and any other nuclear explosive devices, Stressing that the catastrophic effects of a nuclear weapon detonation, whether by accident, miscalculation or design, cannot be adequately addressed, Convinced that the total elimination of nuclear weapons is the only absolute guarantee against the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons, and alarmed by threats to use nuclear weapons, Recognizing the importance of maintaining the moratorium on nuclear testing, and recalling the object and purpose of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, A/RES/78/240 Addressing the legacy of nuclear weapons: providing victim assistance and environmental remediation to Member States affected by the use or testing of nuclear weapons 23-26249 2/3 Recalling that the 2010 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons expressed deep concern at the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons, and underscoring the increased attention to engaging with affected communities during the tenth Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, Acknowledging the disproportionate impact of the testing of nuclear weapons and other nuclear explosive devices on Indigenous Peoples, non-self-governing peoples, as well as women and girls, Recognizing that the implementation of victim assistance and environmental remediation constitutes meaningful steps towards the achievement of nuclear disarmament and the Sustainable Development Goals, Noting the efforts of Member States and international organizations in addressing environmental remediation and victim assistance, Affirming the role of the International Atomic Energy Agency in addressing contaminated environments, Recognizing the technical expertise of the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation, Recognizing also that visiting test sites and participating in the annual International Day against Nuclear Tests, unanimously proclaimed by the General Assembly in its resolution 64/35 of 2 December 2009, raises awareness of the humanitarian and environmental impact, Recalling the testimonies of survivors and victims of the nuclear tests at the conferences on the humanitarian impact of nuclear weapons, convened by Norway, on 4 and 5 March 2013, Mexico, on 13 and 14 February 2014, and Austria, on 8 and 9 December 2014 and on 20 June 2022, where survivors and victims of the tests’ experiences and testimonies contributed to our understanding of the harmful effects of the testing and use of nuclear weapons, especially the gendered and disproportionate impact of ionizing radiation on women and girls, Noting the humanitarian provisions on victim assistance, environmental remediation, international cooperation and assistance of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which entered into force on 21 January 2021, and the references to these humanitarian provisions contained in the Vienna Action Plan, adopted at the First Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons on 22 June 2022, Affirming the significance of Human Rights Council resolution 51/35 of 7 October 2022 on technical assistance and capacity-building to address the human rights implications of the nuclear legacy in the Marshall Islands 1 and General Assembly resolution 75/210 of 21 December 2020 entitled “International cooperation and coordination for the human and ecological rehabilitation and economic development of the Semipalatinsk region of Kazakhstan”, and noting the efforts by some Member States as described in these resolutions, Bearing in mind that certain Member States affected by the use and testing of nuclear weapons and other nuclear explosive devices require the technical capacities and resources to effectively assist victims or remediate contaminated environments within their jurisdiction, 1. Encourages further international cooperation and discussions to assist victims, and assess and remediate environments contaminated by the use and testing __________________ 1 See Official Records of the General Assembly, Seventy-seventh Session, Supplement No. 53A (A/77/53/Add.1), chap. III, sect. A. Addressing the legacy of nuclear weapons: providing victim assistance and environmental remediation to Member States affected by the use or testing of nuclear weapons A/RES/78/240 3/3 23-26249 of nuclear weapons and other nuclear explosive devices, including through bilateral, regional and multilateral frameworks, such as relevant treaties; 2. Urges that Member States, which have used or tested nuclear weapons or any other nuclear explosive devices, to share, as appropriate, technical and scientific information regarding the humanitarian and environmental consequences of such use and testing with Member States affected by the use or testing of nuclear weapons or any other nuclear explosive devices, and calls upon Member States, in a position to do so, to contribute technical and financial assistance, as appropriate; 3. Recognizes that the responsibility to address the harms resulting from a detonation of using or testing a nuclear weapon or any other nuclear explosive device lies, respectively, with the Member States that have done so; 4. Requests the Secretary-General to seek the views and proposals of Member States regarding efforts and ongoing needs related to victim assistance and environmental assessment and remediation, and to submit a substantiative report, with an annex containing those views, to the General Assembly at its seventy-ninth session, for further discussion by Member States; 5. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its seventy-ninth session, under the item entitled “General and complete disarmament”, the sub-item entitled “Addressing the legacy of nuclear weapons: providing victim assistance and environmental remediation to Member States affected by the use or testing of nuclear weapons”. 50th (resumed) plenary meeting 22 December 2023

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