On 15 March 2024, the Permanent Mission of the Kyrgyz Republic to the International Organisations in Vienna, together with the Vienna Office of the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs, organised a seminar on the theme: " Reducing the human cost of weapons ". The event was timed to coincide with the International Day for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation Awareness and was held at the Vienna Diplomatic Academy with the participation in a hybrid format of representatives of United Nations Member States, academia and youth.

T. Makeyev, Permanent Representative of the Kyrgyz Republic to International Organisations in Vienna, made a welcoming speech at the seminar.

In his speech, the Permanent Representative of the Kyrgyz Republic drew attention to the modern challenges that the world community has to face, including the change in the military-political paradigm of the world and the development of new technologies that may pose a threat to humanity.

He also informed that a Memorandum of Understanding between the Central Asian Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone and the African Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone (OPANAL) was signed in December 2023 as part of strengthening multilateral non-proliferation arrangements.

He stressed that the annual celebration of the International Day provides a positive impetus for awareness-raising and the inclusion of disarmament and non-proliferation issues in general education programmes. He assured of Kyrgyzstan's commitment to peace, non-violence and prevention of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

Rebecca Jovin, Head of the Vienna Office of the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs, expressed gratitude to Kyrgyzstan for the initiative to proclaim the International Day and support in holding such events for the second year in a row.

For reference: On 7 December 2022, the UN General Assembly unanimously supported Kyrgyzstan's initiative and adopted a resolution to proclaim 5 March as the International Day for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation Awareness.