UN General Assembly
2016

Ireland wishes to see genuine progress on multilateral nuclear disarmament, building on the work of the Open-ended Working Group. We are also concerned at evidence of harm to civilians from the use of explosive weapons with wide-area effects and consequences in populated areas. The disproportionate gender impact of nuclear weapons and of illegal arms transfers and illicit trafficking in small arms and light weapons is also a matter of great concern to us, as is the need to ensure greater gender balance in all disarmament discussions. Effective and responsible United Nations peacekeeping is an important means of preventing forced displacement at a time of conflict or uneasy peace. Ireland is strongly committed to its active role in United Nations peacekeeping operations. We are proud of our unbroken record of service extending over almost six decades.