Costa Rica Demands Nuclear Disarmament, AI Weapons Treaty, and Latin American UN Chief

Costa Rica's foreign minister used his General Assembly address to deliver a sweeping indictment of the global security order, warning that nuclear conflict risk is the highest in decades while demanding a binding treaty on autonomous weapons by 2026. Minister Arnoldo André Tinoco also made an explicit bid for the region, declaring it is Latin America and the Caribbean's turn to provide the next UN Secretary-General starting in January 2027.

• Costa Rica warns nuclear conflict risk is at its highest in decades, urges nuclear-armed states to recommit to disarmament ahead of the 2026 NPT Review Conference
• Binding treaty on autonomous weapons demanded by 2026 — "no algorithm should make life-or-death decisions," minister declares
• AI governance panel co-led by Costa Rica and Spain adopted by consensus, launches next day
• 300 million people need humanitarian aid, but minister says the crisis is one of political will, not resources
• Latin America and the Caribbean should provide the next Secretary-General, Costa Rica argues, as selection process approaches
• Binding plastics pollution treaty and pause on deep-sea mining urged alongside accelerated climate financing

Why it matters: Nuclear weapons are being recentered in national security strategies worldwide, and the 2026 NPT Review Conference is the next major multilateral checkpoint for disarmament commitments — making Costa Rica's framing a direct challenge to nuclear-armed states.