Greenpeace flies a hot air balloon over Lake Leman with the banner message BAN THE BOMB clearly stated.
While the most important conference about nuclear
non-proliferation and disarmament finished today, member States of
the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) failed to agree a common
understanding or way forward on how to achieve the abolition of the
world s nuclear arsenals (1).
At the same time a majority of member states during the
Conference have continued to support the inalienable right under
the NPT for all members to trade in nuclear technology and
materials
For peaceful purposes (2). The almost complete failure of states
to acknowledge that this inalienable right of the NPT provides
countries with the means to have nuclear weapons is ignoring the
current global realities of increasing proliferation.
Disagreement remains over:
* The lack of progress in bringing about the global abolition of
nuclear weapons;
* Israel's nuclear arsenal and establishing a nuclear weapon
free zone in the region and the nuclear weapons programmes of India
and Pakistan;
* The threatened use of nuclear weapons in even a conventional
conflict by the United States and others and, in some cases, their
use pre-emptively;
* New nuclear weapons development programmes;
* The possible resumption of nuclear testing;
* The failure to begin negotiating a treaty to restrict access
to nuclear materials for use in nuclear weapons;
* The strengthening of the NPT to allow it to respond adequately
to questions over non-compliance and withdrawal by states Parties
such as the recent case of North Korea;
* The right of nations to have access to nuclear technology for
peaceful purposes including Japan s plutonium reprocessing
programme and Iran's uranium enrichment programme;
* The unilateral action of the United States backed by Britain
in their attack on Iraq.
"We face a nuclear crisis of extraordinary proportions. The NPT
is at present the only treaty containing a legal obligation on
states to get rid of their nuclear weapons. It is the most powerful
multilateral voice for halting nuclear proliferation and for
achieving global abolition yet all they can do is agree to
disagree," said William Peden, nuclear disarmament campaigner from
Greenpeace International.
At their last review of the NPT in 2000, the nuclear-weapons
States reaffirmed their commitment to accomplish the total
elimination of their nuclear arsenals. There has been little
movement in that direction and the overall goal of eliminating
nuclear weapons in a framework of general and complete disarmament
remains distant.
"At a time of increasing global proliferation threats, nations
here have chosen largely to ignore one of the fundamental flaws of
the NPT you can use it to access large amounts of technology,
material
and expertise that can put you one step nearer to becoming a
nuclear weapon state. That was the lesson exposed in raq in 1991
when its secret nuclear weapons programme was exposed and yet it
still fails to
change global policy," said Shaun Burnie, nuclear campaigner
from Greenpeace International
The states Parties will meet again next year before a formal
decision making review conference occurs in 2005.
Notes: 1. Article VI of the NPT commits the declared Nuclear Weapons States to pursue negotiations in good faith to achieve the global abolition of nuclear weapons. 2. Article IV of the NPT is the carrot of the Treaty that encourages nations to join. States parties that commit to not develop nuclear weapons are rewarded with access to nuclear technology and materials.