NEW YORK (Kyodo) A Japan-proposed U.N. resolution for disarmament will be put to a vote Wednesday, a U.N. diplomatic source said.
Resolutions calling for the elimination of nuclear weapons have been submitted by Japan and approved annually for 15 years since 1994.
Given a record 72 cosponsors as of Monday, this year's resolution is most likely to be adopted by the General Assembly's First Committee, which is in charge of disarmament issues, the source said.
The previous high was 58, marked in 2008. Given recent global moves toward disarmament, a record number of U.N. members may vote in favor of the resolution, eclipsing the previous record of 169 countries in 2006.
If the First Committee adopts the nonbinding resolution, it will be presented during a General Assembly plenary session and should be adopted, as it usually is, without revision.
The United States, under the leadership of President Barack Obama, is a cosponsor of the resolution for the first time. It is expected to vote in support of it for the first time in nine years.
Under the administration of George W. Bush, the United States voted against the Japanese proposals.
Among the other permanent U.N. Security Council members, Britain, France and Russia are poised to support the proposal and China has yet to clarify its position, the source said. Beijing has abstained from voting in recent years.
If China backs it, it would be the first time since 1998 that those five nuclear powers would be on board.
The draft text of the resolution says the United Nations welcomes the "recent global momentum of nuclear disarmament toward a world without nuclear weapons" strengthened by world leaders, according to the source.
Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev have pledged to work together to further reduce their nuclear arms.