Stop Playing with Fire, ‘Silence the Bombs Before They Speak Again’, Secretary-General Urges in Message for International Day against Nuclear Testing

Following is UN Secretary-General António Guterres' message for the International Day against Nuclear Tests, observed on 29 August:

This important day arrives amid rising geopolitical tensions and growing nuclear risks - including the disturbing prospect of a return to nuclear testing.

In 2025, we commemorate the eightieth anniversary of the first nuclear test. We must never forget the legacy of over 2,000 nuclear weapons tests carried out over the last 80 years.

The effects of these explosions have been horrific. Nuclear tests drive displacement and contaminate lands and oceans. They sow the seeds of long-term health crises, including cancers and other chronic illnesses. And they deepen the cracks in the foundation of global trust, stability and peace. We cannot accept this.

The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty remains the only internationally agreed, legally binding instrument to end all nuclear tests. Its entry into force, long overdue, is more urgent than ever. I call on all countries to ratify it - immediately and without conditions.

My message to leaders is simple: stop playing with fire. Now is the time to silence the bombs before they speak again.