India at the UN: Nuclear Weapons Must Not Be "Routine Instruments of Statecraft"
India used its Right of Reply (a country's chance to answer another country's remarks) at the First Committee of the UN General Assembly, which deals with disarmament and international security. It was replying to remarks made by Pakistan on Jammu and Kashmir.
India's representative from its Permanent Mission to the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva said Jammu and Kashmir is an integral and inalienable part of India, and that nuclear weapons "must not be treated as routine instruments of statecraft" (tools of everyday foreign policy).
India warned that using the threat of nuclear weapons as a shield for smaller attacks below the level of open war (sub-conventional activity, such as terrorism) raises the risk of escalation instead of encouraging restraint.
India restated three principles: any terrorist attack will get a fitting response; India will not bow to nuclear blackmail; and India will make no difference between those who sponsor terrorism and those who plan it.
India said its actions in May 2025 (Operation Sindoor, launched 7 May 2025) were measured, targeted and non-escalatory, and taken in self-defence after the 22 April 2025 Pahalgam attack, in which 26 civilians were killed. It said a state using non-state actors is still responsible for their acts.
India also referred to the Indus Waters Treaty, held in abeyance since the Pahalgam attack, and to the A.Q. Khan proliferation network, linking it to UN Security Council Resolution 1540 (2004). It urged all nuclear suppliers to stay highly vigilant.
India's Nuclear Doctrine: No First Use and Credible Minimum Deterrence
India's nuclear doctrine is the official set of rules on why India keeps nuclear weapons and when it would use them. Its heart is two ideas. No First Use (NFU) means India will never be the first to use a nuclear weapon; it will use one only to hit back after a nuclear attack on it. Credible Minimum Deterrence (CMD) means India keeps only as many weapons as it needs to make any enemy believe that attacking India would be suicidal.
India's warning at the UN that nuclear weapons must not be "routine instruments of statecraft" comes straight from its own doctrine, which treats nuclear weapons only as a deterrent against nuclear attack. By saying it "will not bow to nuclear blackmail", India signalled that a nuclear shield will not stop it from responding to terror attacks, as its May 2025 actions showed.
UN Security Council Resolution 1540 (2004): Keeping WMDs Away from Non-State Actors
UN Security Council Resolution 1540 is a binding decision of the UN Security Council that orders every country in the world to stop terrorists and other non-state groups from getting weapons of mass destruction (WMDs). WMDs here mean nuclear, chemical and biological weapons, along with the missiles and other systems that carry them. Countries must pass laws, set up controls and report to the UN on what they have done.
At the UN, India raised the A.Q. Khan network, whose exposure helped shape Resolution 1540, to remind countries that nuclear technology has leaked from its neighbourhood before. India urged all nuclear suppliers to be extremely careful about transferring advanced weapons and nuclear technology.
United Nations General Assembly (UNGA): The World's Parliament
The United Nations General Assembly, or UNGA, is the main meeting place of the United Nations where every member country has a seat and one vote. Today it has 193 member states. You can think of it as a "world parliament", where big and small countries debate global problems as equals. Most of its detailed work is done in six Main Committees, each dealing with one area.
India's statement was made in the First Committee, the UNGA's forum for disarmament and international security. India used its Right of Reply there to answer Pakistan's remarks on Jammu and Kashmir and to set out its position on nuclear weapons and terrorism.
- Forum: First Committee of the UN General Assembly (Disarmament and International Security), Right of Reply
- India's key line: nuclear weapons "must not be treated as routine instruments of statecraft"
- India's three principles: fitting response to terror; no bowing to nuclear blackmail; no distinction between sponsors and masterminds of terror
- Pahalgam attack: 22 April 2025, 26 civilians killed
- Operation Sindoor launched: 7 May 2025
- Indus Waters Treaty: held in abeyance by India after the Pahalgam attack
- UNSC Resolution 1540: adopted 28 April 2004; 1540 Committee mandate runs to 30 November 2032 (Resolution 2663, 2022)
- India's nuclear doctrine: adopted 4 January 2003 (NFU + Credible Minimum Deterrence)