UN chief calls for renewed focus on mass destruction weapons

UNITED NATIONS — U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is calling on the international community to renew its commitment to eliminate weapons of mass destruction.

Speaking at a high-level meeting of the U.N. Security Council on Tuesday, Ban said much good work has been done over the years to curb the production of WMDs, including the landmark Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and Security Council resolution 1540 in 2004, which legally obligates U.N. member states to enforce measures against the proliferation of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons.

But he said technological advances have made it cheaper and easier for extremist groups to produce and deliver materials for making such weapons.

"Vicious non-state actors that target civilians for carnage are actively seeking chemical, biological and nuclear weapons," he said.