Overview
- - The 11th Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty opened Monday at UN headquarters, bringing 191 parties together to assess non-proliferation, disarmament and peaceful nuclear use through May 22.
- - After Iran was picked as one of 34 vice presidents by the Non-Aligned group, the US called the move an “affront” to the treaty as Iran rejected the charge and Russia opposed singling Tehran out.
- - UN Secretary‑General António Guterres warned that global warhead numbers are rising for the first time in decades, said nuclear testing is back on the table, and flagged AI and quantum computing as new risk multipliers.
- - With the US‑Russia New START treaty expired in February and no successor in place, there are no binding caps on their strategic arsenals, a gap that fuels mistrust and lowers expectations for a deal at this review.
- - Days earlier, the G7 non‑proliferation leads reaffirmed support for the NPT and IAEA safeguards and voiced concern over Russia’s and China’s nuclear build‑ups, while the UK pressed for step‑by‑step risk reduction and support for verification.