On 26 September the world community commemorates the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons. 

Ukraine as a country, which made the invaluable contribution into the nuclear disarmament, supports further efforts of the international community on decrease of the nuclear weapons role in the international policy, gradual elimination of nuclear arsenals and forthcoming times when none of the countries have this type of weaponry.  

Today is of crucial importance to understand that total elimination of nuclear weapons is a process, which envisages not only voluntary steps of nuclear states towards its destruction, but also creation of preconditions for this path. Until some non-nuclear states continue to develop their nuclear programs as key element of defense system, full elimination of nuclear weapons by UNSC permanent members can't be considered possible.  

Thus, a successful example of the total nuclear disarmament is the only argument for refusal from new nuclear programs and ensuring NPT regime. 

That is why today Ukraine reminds the international community that support of our state in rebuff of external aggression from the Russian Federation, which pledged in Budapest Memorandum to guarantee our security in return to our refusal from nuclear weapons, is of vital importance.