ROME — Archbishop Gabriele Caccia told the United Nations General Assembly on behalf of the Vatican on Wednesday that nuclear deterrence even without the intent to employ nuclear arms is “immoral.”
In his address, Archbishop Caccia (pictured), Apostolic Nuncio and Permanent Observer of the Holy See, lamented disarmament architecture currently “hangs by a thread” and complete disarmament remains out of reach due to “a lack of vision for the future.”
In a thinly veiled rebuke to Russian President Vladimir Putin, the archbishop declared that “any threat to use nuclear weapons merits unequivocal and unhesitating condemnation.”
True and lasting peace among nations cannot consist in “the possession of an equal supply of armaments but only in mutual trust,” he said, while also calling for “the banning of nuclear weapons and for disarmament.”
Pointing to the lessons of history, Caccia observed that sixty years ago, “humanity stood on the precipice of nuclear annihilation as the United States and the Soviet Union came perilously close to war in the Caribbean Sea,” which was only averted through “their leaders’ commitment to dialogue and recognition of the devastating impact of nuclear war.”
Despite ongoing problems, the archbishop also noted signs of hope such as six States ratifying the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), as well as nine States ratifying, and five States signing the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).
Many States, however, still subscribe to a “perverse dichotomy that tries to defend and ensure stability and peace through a false sense of security sustained by a mentality of fear and mistrust,” the archbishop declared, citing Pope Francis.
“Until we transition from such a mindset towards one of integral disarmament, the threat of nuclear weapons use will remain. Their total elimination is the only guarantee that they will not be used again,” Caccia asserted.
Along with the threat of war, military expenditure squanders resources that could promote integral human development and save countless lives, the archbishop added.
The Holy See also welcomes moratoria on the testing of anti-satellite missiles as a first step toward banning them outright, he stated, which “could complement laudable legal efforts to prohibit the weaponization of outer space.”
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