U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Sept. 26 joined about 30 other world leaders and representatives from a total of about 90 countries at a meeting on the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) at United Nations Headquarters in New York to issue the Seventh Joint Ministerial Statement calling for the treaty’s entry into force. “Almost 20 years have passed since the CTBT was opened for signature,” the statement reads. “Although the Treaty is yet to come into force, the nuclear test moratorium has become a de facto international norm. However, without the lasting and legally-binding effect of entry into force of the Treaty, such a norm remains fragile. We therefore urge all states that have not done so to sign and ratify the Treaty, in particular the remaining eight Annex 2 States to sign and ratify without delay.” Signed by 183 states and ratified by 163 nations, the CTBT would ban nuclear explosive testing anywhere, anytime, and is awaiting ratification of eight “Annex 2” states – the United States, Iran, North Korea, Pakistan, India, China, Israel and Egypt – to enter into force.
Kerry acknowledged that the U.S. has not signed CTBT, but also underscored its alignment with U.S. policy and reiterated the Obama Administration’s commitment to its entry into force. “What this treaty does is simple: It sets standards and enforces the kind of verification measures that the United States already has in place, and that’s why we remain a strong supporter of the treaty,” Kerry said. The secretary also touted advances of the U.S. stockpile stewardship program and the “nearly completed” CTBT international monitoring system, and cited both as imperative for U.S. Senate ratification. “I know some members of the United States Senate still have concerns about this treaty. I believe they can be addressed by science, by facts, through computers and the technology we have today coupled with a legitimate stockpile stewardship program,” Kerry said. “As the United States Senate considers ratification, it will require assurances not only that an effective, operational, and sustainable verification regime is in place, but that other nations are committed to sustaining it.”
Kerry urged the seven other Annex 2 countries to “accelerate their efforts” to ratify CTBT. He said: “There is no reason for the Annex II states to wait for the United States before completing their own ratification process, and this treaty is a national security imperative for all of us.”
