Kazakhstan is one of the leaders of anti-nuclear movement - Nazarbayev

None
None
ASTANA. KAZINFORM - The XXI International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War World Congress opened in Kazakhstan's capital Astana on August 25.

President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev addressed the welcome address to participants of the XXI World Congress of the international movement "International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War" (IPPNW). Message from the Head of the State has been read by the Minister of Health and Social Development of Kazakhstan Tamara Duissenova. "It is symbolic that this forum is being held in the Republic of Kazakhstan - a country that has suffered from nuclear tests and is now one of the leaders of the anti-nuclear movement. Global agenda of the Congress has a deep relevance and completely in tune with our initiatives in the field of nuclear disarmament", the statement reads. Nursultan Nazarbayev noted that Kazakhstan closed the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site, abandoned world's fourth largest nuclear arsenal, and closed fast-neutron reactor in Aktau. Congress has being attended by over 500 delegates from 50 countries of the world (doctors, representatives of international organizations, anti-nuclear movements and NGOs). "These days, we are also celebrating the 25th anniversary of the anti-nuclear movement "Nevada-Semipalatinsk". Kazakhstan convincingly demonstrated to the public that the policy of peace, openness, and cooperation are essential to prosperity", said in his opening speech, Deputy Foreign Minister Askar Musin. Founded in 1980, IPPNW was an inspiration born of the Cold War. With the world divided into two militarized camps poised on the brink of nuclear war, a small group of Soviet and American doctors took a leap of faith. They reasoned that their common interest in survival was more powerful than the ideological divides between them. They believed that their obligation as physicians included a common commitment to the prevention of nuclear war. Led by co-founders Drs. Bernard Lown, Jim Muller, Eric Chivian and Herb Abrams of the US and Drs. Evgueni Chazov, Mikhail Kuzin and Leonid Ilyin of the Soviet Union, they organized a team to conduct meticulous scientific research based on data collected by Japanese colleagues who had studied the effects of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. And they drew upon their knowledge of the medical effects of burn, blast, and radiation injuries. IPPNW is a non-partisan federation of national medical groups in 62 countries, representing tens of thousands of doctors, medical students, other health workers, and concerned citizens who share the common goal of creating a more peaceful and secure world freed from the threat of nuclear annihilation.

Currently reading