We welcome the leadership shown by President Biden and President Putin in their June 16 Joint Statement on Strategic Stability reaffirming the principle that “a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought.” We are encouraged that President Putin and President Xi affirmed the same principle in their June 28 Joint Statement.

This principle is fundamental to ensuring predictability, reducing the risk of armed conflicts and the threat of nuclear war. It provides a foundation for progress to reduce existential common risks, including on the climate and global public health. It is especially important as new technologies reduce decision time for leaders. Such a principle is also at the core of the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) whose Preamble recognises “the devastation that would be visited upon all mankind by a nuclear war and the consequent need to make every effort to avert the danger of such a war and to take measures to safeguard the security of peoples”.

The Permanent Five members of the United Nations Security Council have a particular responsibility to reduce the risks of nuclear war and uphold international peace and security, as the only nuclear weapons states recognised under the NPT.

We call on the P5 heads of government to jointly affirm this simple and powerful formula and provide a vital demonstration of leadership that would strengthen the NPT. We stand ready to support your efforts to move the world in a safer and more hopeful direction.