essential safeguards could not have imagined that they could be made to imply the right to threaten the survival of the world, which the Charter was supposed to lead into an enlightened new age. We firmly believe that the time has come for the international community to engage in collective introspection on our present predicament. Serious consideration needs to be given to the attitudes, policies, doctrines, institutions and instruments required for a nuclear-weapon-free world, which it is in our hands to realize. In particular, the misplaced faith in the relevance of nuclear weapons for keeping peace and enhancing security needs to be speedily discarded. An air of cautious optimism and hope is all that we can allow ourselves at this stage. The recent signs of a turning-point that we have perceived are vulnerable. These cannot be nurtured in a world order based on any form of domination or divisiveness, whether political, economic or military. At SSOD-III, India proposed the outline of a nuclear-weapon-free and peaceful world order in the form of an action plan, which called upon the international community to negotiate a binding commitment to general and complete disarmament under effective international control. While nuclear disarmament constitutes the central motif in each stage of the plan, it is supported by collateral and other measures to further the process in a comprehensive manner that would enhance global security. It includes proposals for banning chemical weapons and other weapons of mass destruction, CD/PV.548 16 (Mr, Sharma, India) bringing to a halt and reversing the arms race, using scientific and technological developments for the benefit of mankind and reducing conventional arms and armed forces to the minimum levels required for defence purposes, and sets out principles for the conduct of international relations in a world free of nuclear weapons. The action plan has been tabled in the 
**Analysis**
The text discusses the possibility of a nuclear-weapon-free world, the need for collective introspection on the present predicament, and the proposal for an action plan to achieve this goal. It emphasizes the importance of reducing arms and armed forces, banning weapons of mass destruction, and promoting international relations based on cooperation and peaceful coexistence. The language used is formal and diplomatic, indicating that the text is likely related to international relations and global governance.

**Category**
International relations, Science and technology