in bilateral negotiations and enabled to fulfil its mandate as the sole multilateral negotiating body in the field of disarmament and to adopt concrete measures of disarmament, in particular nuclear disarmament." NR/plj A/C.l/40/PV. 9 46 (Mr. Dhanapala, Sri Lanka) This session of the General Assembly marks the fortieth anniversary of the birth of the United Nations with the signing of its Charter, enshrining a humanist and challenging vision of multilateral co-operation for peace and development. It is sombre to reflect on the fact that this year is also the fortieth anniversary of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which cast their shadows on the past four decades of human history. ~ new type of weapon was added to the arsenals of nations, the explosion of one of which weapons today can release more energy in one microsecond than that from all conventional weapons used in all wars in history. That destructive capacity to annihilate the world we have inherited in trust is stored in more than 50,000 nuclear warheads with an explosive power roughly equivalent to one million Hiroshima bombs. The twin anniversaries corning together are symbolic of an awesome choice facing mankind which the Final Document of the first special session on disarmament identified in the following words: "Mankind is confronted with a choice: we must halt the arms race and proceed to disarmament or face annihilation" (resolution S-10/2, para. 18). The response of some nations to that choice remains ambivalent and ambiguous as they engage in an arms race that threatens to extend to all frontiers, including space. There is but one place where humankind can demonstrate that its choice for disarmament and peace is unambiguous and unequivocal. That place is within the forums of the United Nations machinery created for the deliberation and negotiation 
**Analysis**
The text discusses the topic of disarmament, nuclear weapons, and the choice between arms race and disarmament. It also mentions the role of the United Nations in facilitating negotiations and negotiations. The text does not seem to focus on any specific economic or environmental issues, but rather on a broader international relations and security topic.

**Category**
International relations, Science and technology