Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama has said that eliminating nuclear weapons is central to his vision of U.S. nuclear policy.

Speaking at Purdue University in Indiana, Obama said: “It's time to send a clear message to the world: America seeks a world with no nuclear weapons.”

“As long as nuclear weapons exist, we'll retain a strong deterrent. But we will make the goal of eliminating all nuclear weapons a central element in our nuclear policy,” he said.

“We'll negotiate with Russia to achieve deep reductions in both our nuclear arsenals and we'll work with other nuclear powers to reduce global stockpiles dramatically.”

The White House hopeful said they would “seek a verifiable global ban on the production of fissile material for weapons.”

He added: “And we'll work with the Senate to ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty and then seek its earliest possible entry into force.”