The General Assembly First Committee

War Dove

The problems of the world are too numerous to be discussed by the whole General Assembly of the United Nations. Therefore, the global agenda is divided into to six groups or clusters, which are discussed in six Main Committees. The First Committee handles all matters on Disarmament and International Security, and is a kind of global opinion poll on disarmament.

Every year the vast majority of states vote for nuclear disarmament negotiations to commence immediately, reaffirming the very first resolution of the General Assembly in 1946, which was about eliminating atomic weapons.

The First Committee meets every year in September/October after the September General Assembly General Debate. All 191 member states of the UN attend to exchange views on a wide range of disarmament issues, and then to negotiate and vote on up to 40 resolutions.

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