Russia on August 26 blocked the adoption of a joint declaration by a United Nations conference on nuclear disarmament.
Key highlights
- The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which is reviewed by its 191 signatories every five years, aims to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons.
- Russian representative objected to a draft text citing “grave concern” over military activities around Ukraine’s nuclear plants, in particular Zaporizhzhia.
- The final document needed approval of all countries at the conference that are parties to the treaty aimed at curbing the spread of nuclear weapons.
- The NPT review conference is supposed to be held every five years but was delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
- This marked the second failure of its 191 state parties to produce an outcome document.
- The last review conference in 2015 ended without an agreement because of serious differences over establishing a Middle East zone free of weapons of mass destruction.
- The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons regretted Russia’s stance.
About International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN)
- ICAN is an international organisation with partner organisations in more than one hundred countries, including Norway.
- Its headquarters are in Geneva. The organisation was founded in 2007 to mobilise people all over the world to convince their governments to support a ban on nuclear weapons.
- The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize 2017.
India and Nuclear Treaties
- NPT and CTPT: India has refrained from signing nuclear disarmament treaties such as the NPT and Comprehensive Nuclear Ban Treaty (CTBT). India feels they these are discriminatory — while non-nuclear states aren’t allowed to have nuclear weapons, nuclear-weapon states have no obligation to give them up.
- The NPT only recognises a country as a nuclear power if tests were conducted before 1967. India isn’t ready to sign the treaty as a non-nuclear weapons state.
- Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW): It came into force on 22 January 2021. It is a legally binding instrument aimed at total elimination of nuclear weapons, under the aegis of the United Nations. India did not participate in the negotiations on the TPNW and has consistently made it clear that it will not become a party to the Treaty. India does not support the Treaty, and shall not be bound by any of the obligations that may arise from it. India believes that this Treaty does not constitute or contribute to the development of customary international law; nor does it set any new standards or norms.
- Nuclear Suppliers Group: In 1992, the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), a multilateral export control regime, decided, as a matter of policy, to stop all nuclear commerce with countries that have not ratified all NPT safeguards. In September 2008, the NSG exempted India though it hadn’t ratified the NPT. India wants to be part of the NSG, its unwillingness to sign the NPT has drawn opposition from several countries, but mainly from China. In 2006, India signed a civil nuclear deal with the US.
- MTCR: India acceded to the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) in 2016 while in 2018, it was admitted to the Australia Group.
- Wassenaar Arrangement: In 2017, India joined the Wassenaar Arrangement. Like the NSG, Wassenaar is a group of elite countries that subscribe to arms export control. The agreement ensures greater transparency in the exchange of conventional arms, dual-use goods, and technologies. All UNSC members are part of the agreement except China.
