Since the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) entered into force in 2021, States Parties have placed sustained emphasis on the practical implementation of its provisions on victim assistance, environmental remediation and international cooperation. An international trust fund has been proposed as one of the ways that such implementation could be pursued, through the mobilization and application of resources for supporting victim assistance and environmental remediation.
To support these efforts, UNIDIR, in cooperation with the Permanent Mission of New Zealand, is organizing an event that will provide a forum for policymakers and experts to examine key considerations related to the proposed trust fund ahead of the First TPNW Review Conference in late 2026.
Discussions on the fund’s purpose, structure and feasibility have been ongoing since 2022, notably within the informal working group on victim assistance, environmental remediation, and international cooperation and assistance. At the Third Meeting of States Parties, the Co-Chairs of this informal working group were mandated to develop a stand-alone report containing recommendations on possible guidelines, technical provisions and terms of reference for a TPNW trust fund.
To inform this process, UNIDIR has produced a report on Steps Towards a Voluntary Trust Fund for the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. The report examines pathways for establishing a voluntary fund, identifies key operational elements and outlines three options informed by existing trust fund models.
Agenda
Opening remarks
- Ambassador Deborah Geels, Permanent Representative of New Zealand to the United Nations Office at Geneva
Panel discussion
- Renata Hessmann Dalaqua, Head of Integrated Approaches Programme, UNIDIR
- David Atwood, Independent Consultant
- Luiza Delaflora Cassol, Research Assistant, Weapons of Mass Destruction Programme, UNIDIR
Moderator
- James Revill, Head of the Weapons of Mass Destruction Programme, UNIDIR
When and where
Thursday, 16 July 2026 | 14:00–15:30 CEST | Online
Check your local time here.
RSVP
For online participation, please register here.
Further information
For any questions, please contact Vhaire Gudgeon at vhaire.gudgeon@un.org.
In partnership with
