Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, apostolic nuncio and Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, addressed the Tenth Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

“Ensuring the peaceful use of nuclear energy means that nuclear energy, medicine, and research facilities must not be targeted in war, which could turn such sites into sources of proliferation, create ‘dirty bombs,’ or radiologically contaminate local communities and the environment, harming present and future generations,” the prelate said.

Archbishop Caccia also spoke of “the promise of providing climate-neutral energy without harmful impacts to health, the environment, and future generations,” while cautioning that “states should take steps to remediate environments negatively affected by nuclear accidents and uranium mining, assist communities suffering from such effects, and agree on long-term storage solutions for high-level radioactive waste.”