In a joint statement released after their recent meeting in London, President Dmitry Medvedev of the Russian Federation and President Barack Obama of the United States of America addressed nuclear weapons.
"As leaders of the two largest nuclear weapons states, we agreed to work together to fulfill our obligations under Article VI of the Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and demonstrate leadership in reducing the number of nuclear weapons in the world," reads a key sentence.
In the statement, the presidents pledge to "carry out joint efforts to strengthen the international regime for nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery."
Much work remains to be done to implement them, but these hopeful words speak to the presence of nuclear weapons in countries around the world, not just in the arsenals of Russia and the United States
In 1946, the General Assembly of the PCUSA spoke in support of measures
“. . . looking toward drastic cuts in national armaments through
international agreement.” Since then, Presbyterian General Assemblies (PDF) have understood that working for God’s
intended order and life abundant involves seeking international
disarmament and arms control measures.
In these statements, the Presbyterian Church has recognized that eliminating nuclear weapons alone will not achieve the wholeness, well being, and justice of God’s shalom; but it is a crucial, necessary step in bringing God’s shalom into being.