More than 120 countries are expected to adopt the first ever treaty to ban nuclear weapons at the G20 summit, despite opposition from nuclear-armed nations.
Elayne Whyte Gomez, president of the UN conference that has been negotiating the treaty which is to be legally binding, told reporters: “We are on the verge of adopting the treaty on the prohibition of nuclear weapons.
“This will be a historic moment and it will be the first multilateral nuclear disarmament treaty to be concluded in more than 20 years. The world has been waiting for this legal norm for 70 years.”
Ms Gomez added: “I am really confident that the final draft has captured the aspirations of the overwhelming majority of those participating in the conference, including civil society.”
129 countries – two thirds of UN’s 193 member states - had signed up to be a part of the drafting of the text, which is in its final stages after three weeks of intense scrutiny.
Also the Costa Rica’s ambassador to the UN in Geneva, Ms Gomez admits that though she hopes the treaty would be adopted by consensus, rules of procedure dictates that a vote is also allowed.
The final draft treaty requires all countries that ratify “never under any circumstances to develop, test, produce, manufacture, otherwise acquire, possess or stockpile nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices.” It also bans any transfer or use of nuclear weapons or nuclear explosive devices — and the threat to use such weapons.
Despite the vast support for creation of the treaty, the nine powers thought to hold nuclear weapons – the United States, Russia, Britain, China, France, India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel – are in opposition.
Instead of a ban, the US and other nuclear powers want to fortify the pre-existing Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty.
That pact, which has been widely criticised as being ineffective, originally sought to limit the spread of atomic weapons beyond the five already in possession at the time of its inception – the US, Russia, Britain, France and China. It compels non-nuclear signatory nations to promise not to purse atomic weapons. In return, those who already own nuclear weapons would be obliged to commitment towards nuclear disarmament and guarantee non-nuclear states access to peaceful nuclear technology for producing energy.
Discussion for the new treaty comes in light of North Korea's most recent nuclear and ballistic missile tests, including its July 3 launch.
Additional reporting by AP
