German FM hosts nuclear non-proliferation gathering

Sweden and Germany on Tuesday called for a break in the "deadlock" on international nuclear weapons disarmament, amid fears of threats to global security.

Members of the Stockholm Initiative for Nuclear Disarmament and the Non-Proliferation Treaty met in Berlin to build bridges between nuclear-weapon states and non-nuclear-weapon states ahead of the Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference in April 2020.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said the "world is at a crossroads", citing the US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal and the end of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty between Russia and the US.

Maas raised concerns that "we risk the dissolution of the nuclear order and thus global security" if new agreements were not made.

Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde said "we really would like the nuclear weapon states to take part in the disarmament initiative."

Maas also held bilateral talks with his South Korean counterpart Kang Kyung-wha.