Pakistan Assumes Presidency of UN Disarmament Conference

Geneva (Islamabad): Pakistan assumed the Presidency of the United Nations Conference on Disarmament (CD) in Geneva, with Ambassador Tahir Hussain Andrabi, Additional Secretary for Arms Control and Disarmament and Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, presiding over the body’s meetings on Pakistan’s behalf.

Pakistan holds the final Presidency of the Conference’s 2026 session and will therefore conclude its proceedings for the year. During its tenure, Pakistan is set to steer negotiations on the CD’s Annual Report as well as the corresponding resolution to be tabled before the First Committee of the UN General Assembly.

As part of its role, Pakistan has already begun a series of consultations. Ambassador Andrabi chaired a meeting bringing together the previous Presidents of the Conference for the 2026 session and held separate consultations with representatives of the various regional groups, laying the groundwork for the remainder of the session under Pakistan’s leadership.

The Conference on Disarmament is described as the world’s single multilateral forum for negotiating disarmament and arms control treaties. Headquartered at the United Nations Office at Geneva, it comprises 65 member states, including every state known to possess nuclear weapons.

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Pakistan Assumes Presidency of the United Nations Conference on Disarmament

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— Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Pakistan (@ForeignOfficePk) August 17, 2026

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Its agenda covers some of the most sensitive issues in international security, among them the cessation of the nuclear arms race, the prevention of nuclear war, and the prevention of the weaponisation of outer space.

Over the decades, the CD and its predecessor bodies have negotiated several of the most consequential instruments in the global security architecture, including the Biological Weapons Convention, the Chemical Weapons Convention, and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty.

Pakistan’s assumption of the Presidency at this juncture is being viewed as a reaffirmation of the trust placed by the international community in the country’s diplomatic leadership and its constructive role in multilateral arms control efforts. It also places Pakistan at the centre of ongoing global discourse on disarmament and international peace and security. The announcement was made in Islamabad on 17 August 2026.