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The CTBTO Youth Group (CYG) applauds the unanimous passing of UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 2419, which reaffirms the Council’s commitment to the full implementation of UNSCR 2250 on Youth Involvement in Peace and Security.

The CYG was founded a month after the passing of UNSCR 2250, and since its inception, it has proven to be a meaningful example of the power of including youth in revitalising global peace and security processes. As a group of young leaders, we realize that we will inherit the consequences of today’s conflicts and are concerned about our representation in processes that seek to mitigate violence.

While nuclear weapons testing has dramatically decreased, its bold signature on the planet is an omnipresent reminder of the perils of nuclear armament. In realizing this, the CYG strives to raise awareness amongst current – and future – decision-makers on the risks we still face due to the lack of a legally enforced ban on nuclear testing.

The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), and its robust scientific and technical verification system, is a central pillar of global non-proliferation security architecture and should be respected as such. Furthermore, it demonstrates the possibility to build a universal decision-making system based on facts and mutual understanding and not on interests and ideologies.

However, the treaty’s profile must be raised so it can again be placed on the agenda of non-ratifying states and eventually enter into force. Recent developments on the Korean Peninsula provide an opportunity to strengthen the norm against nuclear testing, but such a norm must be codified and cemented by the immediate entry-into-force of the CTBT.

The creation of a safer world is an urgent task. We do not have the luxury of repeating past mistakes. It is therefore of utmost importance that young people be proactively integrated into international security decision-making.

In both aforementioned resolutions, the Council calls on all relevant actors to consider ways for increasing the representation of young people when negotiating and implementing peace agreements, recognizing that their marginalization is detrimental to building sustainable peace.

During the three years between the two resolutions, a progress study was undertaken to determine how to fulfill this goal, as well as many others. The CYG endorses the three core recommendations of this study:

  • First, it is critical to invest in young people’s capacities, agency, and leadership through substantial funding support, network-building, and capacity-strengthening, recognizing the full diversity of youth and the ways young people organize.
  • Second, the systems that reinforce exclusion must be transformed in order to address the structural barriers limiting youth participation in peace and security.
  • Third, partnerships and collaborative action, where young people are viewed as equal and essential partners for peace, must be prioritized.

About the authors: CTBTO Youth Group (CYG) members actively engage in promoting the CTBT and its verifcation regime. By helping raise awareness of the importance of the treaty, the CYG aims to revitalize the discussion around the CTBT among decision-makers, academia, students, the public, and media. The views expressed in this statement are made in the personal capacity of the authors and not on behalf of the CTBTO or of the CYG as a whole.

The CTBTO Youth Group is open to all students and young graduates who are interested in contributing to global peace and security. Please join us! Learn More: https://youthgroup.ctbto.org #Youth4CTBT

Signatories (A-Z):

  1. Aaron Joshua Pinto
  2. Adi Pick
  3. Aditi Malhotra
  4. Agata Fernandes Swiatkiewicz
  5. Ahmed Al Balushi
  6. Ahmed Amponsah Fordjour
  7. Ahmed Yunisi
  8. Ahsan Chaudhary
  9. Aidyn Mukambayev
  10. Aldilla Ratri
  11. Ali Shahabi
  12. Anna Schaeffer
  13. Anna Umerenko
  14. Arashu Onodera
  15. Arthur Shirichena
  16. Artyom Botov
  17. Ayca Eda Akgun
  18. Baruch Malewich
  19. Benjamin Boateng
  20. Caitlin McLain
  21. Carlos Rodriguez
  22. Chak Vanthy
  23. Christabel Okpalefe
  24. Daeyoung Kim
  25. Daria Gerasimenko
  26. Didier Birimwiragi Namogo
  27. Emmanuel Acholla
  28. Fredrick Meni
  29. Gohar Altaf
  30. Grace Liu
  31. Haithm Alworafi
  32. Hamdi Sheikh
  33. Hamma Dit Amirou Toure
  34. Heng Qin
  35. Iddrisu Awal
  36. Isabella Mason
  37. Janice Angengo
  38. Jaona Andriamampandry
  39. Joel Obengo
  40. Joelle El Sawalhi
  41. Joelle Maga
  42. Jonah Glick-Unterman
  43. Karen Nguna Masila
  44. Khedidja Benkattas
  45. Kinuthia Mwangi
  46. Kwame Adu-Tekyi
  47. Kwangwari Marimira
  48. Lindsey Ricchi
  49. Louis Reitmann
  50. Lucien Manzaba
  51. Lydiah Kamau
  52. Magdalene Wanyaga
  1. Maral Mirshahi
  2. Margaret Rowland
  3. Marianna Arghamanyan
  4. Marius Jano
  5. Mary Dickson
  6. Maximilian Hoell
  7. Metin Dokumacı
  8. Michael Buechl
  9. Mohamed Mahmoud Mounja
  10. Mohamed Yunisi
  11. Moses Karinga
  12. Muhammad Abro
  13. Muhammad Minhaj Khan
  14. Muhammad Qasim
  15. Muhindo Kasay Georges
  16. Nada Taboun
  17. Nathalie Mayer
  18. Nepeina Kseniia
  19. Ngonyo Gandi
  20. Nina Yameogo
  21. Nir Hassid
  22. Olesia Pecani
  23. Paul Ploberger
  24. Peeyush Jain
  25. Philip Boahene
  26. Prince Akor
  27. Rakotondraibe Tsiriandrimanana
  28. Rana Al-Abboodi
  29. Rauan Zhaksybergen
  30. Regina Osei-Bonsu
  31. Rizwan Asghar
  32. Rosemary Anane Krah
  33. Sabina Begic
  34. Saddam Shah
  35. Sahil Shah
  36. Samuel Luyckx
  37. Sebastian Brixey-Williams
  38. Setou Ouattara
  39. Shizuka Kuramitsu
  40. Shunji Fueki
  41. Simon Herteleer
  42. Sitakanta Mishra
  43. Sitara Noor
  44. Sophie Kipkwony
  45. Sufian Ullah
  46. Sweta Basak
  47. Sylvia Mishra
  48. Uzbekov Abylay
  49. Yaa Prempeh
  50. Yasemin Korkusuz Öztürk
  51. Yasmin de Fraiture
  52. Yvonne Durowaa Ntow
  53. Zoe Levornik
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