UN chief warns that rise in global distrust and improvements in nukes are `recipe for annihilation’

An alarming rise in global distrust and division coupled with efforts by countries to improve the accuracy and destructive power of nuclear weapons is “a recipe for annihilation,” the United Nations chief warned Tuesday. In a statement marking the International Day Against Nuclear Tests, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that with nearly 13,000 nuclear weapons stockpiled around the world, “a legally binding prohibition on nuclear tests is a fundamental step in our quest for a world free of nuclear weapons.” The Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty has 196 member states — 186 have signed it and 178 have ratified it, including eight in the last 18 months.