International Day Against Nuclear Tests: A Reminder To End Nuclear Testing Around The World

The International Day against Nuclear Tests is remembered every August 29 of the year. This date marks the 25 years since the nuclear test site in Kazakhstan in the Soviet Union closed.

According to Time, the Soviet Union set off hundreds of nuclear devices for more than 40 years at the Semipalatinsk Test Site in Kazakhstan. After the nuclear testing, the explosions did severe damage on the surroundings, especially in the town of Semipalatinsk, which is almost 100 mi. east of the site. The effects of the radiation harmed the people and environment with babies born with deformities during and after the period of testing. Many people were diagnosed with various types of cancer and more than half of the population died before they reached the age of 60, according to Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty.

The nuclear testing ended in 1989 and it was officially closed on August 29, 1991. The United Nations acknowledges the International Day Against Nuclear Tests yearly on that date to venerate the decision of Kazakhstan's President Nursultan Nazarbayev to close the nuclear test site down.

"Every effort should be made to end nuclear tests in order to avert devastating and harmful effects on the lives and health of people and the environment," states U.N. Resolution 64/35. The Day Against Nuclear Tests was established on December 2, 2009, at the 64th session of the United Nations General Assembly by the resolution 64/35, which was adopted unanimously.

This significant day serves as a reminder of the 1996 Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty that the United Nations adopted. On the other hand, it has not yet entered into force. The treaty indicates banning all nuclear testing or explosions in any setting, but some countries in the world have not signed it yet. These include Egypt, North Korea, China, Pakistan, India, Israel, Iran and United States, according to Time.