Confab urges India, Pakistan, N. Korea to sign CTBT

Japan Policy & Politics,  Oct 11, 1999  

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VIENNA, Oct. 8 Kyodo

An international conference to discuss the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) ended Friday in Vienna with the adoption of a final declaration urging North Korea, India and Pakistan to sign the global pact banning nuclear weapons testing.

The conference also called on the United States, Russia and China to ratify the treaty as an example to other states that have signed but have not yet ratified the 1996 treaty.

North Korea, India and Pakistan are the last three holdouts among 44 nuclear-capable countries whose signatures are required for the universal treaty to come into force.

The declaration noted that North Korea, which did not participate in discussions leading to the CTBT's adoption, has not expressed its intention toward the treaty.

The two South Asian countries -- which became de facto nuclear states after exploding nuclear devices in May 1998 -- have indicated their intention to sign the pact.

All five recognized nuclear powers signed the treaty at its adoption at the U.N. General Assembly on Sept. 24, 1996, although the U.S., Russia and China have yet to deposit instruments of ratification with the U.N. secretary general three years on.

The other two powers, Britain and France, submitted their ratification documents in April 1998 and January this year, respectively.

The declaration welcomed the ratification by the first two states and urged the remaining three to accelerate their ratification processes.

The conference, which was attended by ministers from 90 countries, opened Wednesday at Vienna's Hofburg Palace to consider and decide measures leading to the early entry into force of the three-year-old treaty.

A pall descended midway in the conference when it became clear that a new attempt by U.S. President Bill Clinton to have the Senate act on the treaty was experiencing difficulties. This prompted a number of states to call on the U.S. to take the lead.

The conference participants also agreed to select one country from among the 51 states that have signed and ratified the treaty to promote its speedy implementation, a task Japan offered to take on.

Former Japanese Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura, who served as conference chairman, said Japan held "strong expectations" that the U.S., Russia and China would quickly move toward ratification. He also singled out India for its signature.

"It is Japan's intention to strengthen overall diplomatic efforts, including the use of official development assistance and the deployment of missions to individual states, to encourage the...(required) states to sign and ratify the treaty," Komura said.

As of Friday, 18 out of the 44 states whose signatures and ratification are required have not ratified the treaty, a number of whom appear to be withholding until all five nuclear powers have done so.

The CTBT, which bans nuclear testing and provides for a worldwide network of sensors and on-site inspections to ensure compliance, has been signed by 154 countries.

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