Peace Train participants meet Canadian Ambassador to the United Nations



 







Peace Train participants met Michael Gort, Canadian Ambassador to the United Nations, March 6 in New York. 

During the 45-minute meeting, the group had good discussion about Canada’s role in peacekeeping and disarmament initiatives, Peace Train co-organizer Keith Wyton said. 

This included about how Canada has not attended any of the meeting for the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW)—not even as an observer. 

In so doing, Canada is in alignment with the NATO position on the TPNW, Keith said; no NATO nation has signed or ratified the TPNW, preferring to support the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). That remains Canada’s priority. 

“We asked the Ambassador to let Canada know that Peace Train Canada is supportive of Canada at the very least attending the TPNW meetings as an Observer State, which does not imply support or non-support for the treaty,” he said. 

Keith noted a majority of Canadians (74% by public polling) support Canada signing and ratifying the TPNW. 

“We also suggested that there could be cooperation between the goals and mechanisms of the two treaties and that Peace Train Canada would explore the potential to align with the goals and mechanisms of the NPT treaty,” he said. 

“Both treaties seek to eliminate the security risk of nuclear weapons which can only be guaranteed by their elimination,” he added. 

The TPNW is seen as being more focused on peace while the NPT “is a more militaristic approach with the treaty mechanisms creating a pay-to-play system where nuclear states can talk about disarmament while they continue to modernize and arm themselves with more effective weapons systems,” Keith said. 

In spite of the barriers to meaningful cooperation between the two treaty parties, Peace Train Canada “is committed to advocating to our country to fulfill its legacy as a nation committed to peace and justice in a world on the brink of global catastrophe,” Keith added, noting that the Doomsday Clock at 89 seconds to midnight. 

Photo above: Ambassador Gort (centre) with Peace Train participants to his left and members of his staff to his right. (Christopher Gibbins and Méliné Svadjian.)

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