Minister for Europe (): The House may welcome an
update regarding the tenth Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of
Nuclear Weapons Review Conference, which was held at the United
Nations in New York from 1-26 August. The Conference reviewed
progress and sought to reach consensus on future actions under
the Treaty’s three pillars: disarmament, non-proliferation and
peaceful uses of nuclear technology. While the Conference was
unable to achieve its overall goal of a consensus outcome
document owing to Russian actions, it advanced discussion on each
of the Treaty’s three pillars, and agreed to establish a working
group on further strengthening the review process of the Treaty,
open to all States parties.
We were deeply disappointed that, despite the progress made in
many areas, Russia blocked the adoption of a consensus outcome
document over references to Ukraine, in order to defend its
unprovoked, illegal war on Ukraine. Russia’s betrayal of the
security assurances it gave through the Budapest Memorandum when
Ukraine joined the Treaty, and its responsibility for the
unfolding situation at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, were
both referenced obliquely in the President’s consolidated text.
Russia’s aggression poses grave challenges to the international
nuclear security architecture. The UK, and many other States,
raised these concerns consistently throughout the Conference, and
the UK issued a Joint Statement with 56 countries explaining how
Russia’s aggression and behaviour in Ukraine impacted the Treaty.
The UK played an active role both in the preparation for the
Conference and at the Conference itself. As part of its
preparations, the UK published a revised National Report setting
out the action being taken to support the Treaty and fulfil the
UK’s commitments across all three pillars of the Treaty. At the
start of the Conference, former Minister of State at the Foreign,
Commonwealth and Development Office, , set out the UK’s approach
and progress against the Treaty’s objectives, and led a side
event on the UK’s National Report. The UK’s positive agenda for
the Conference focused on our track record on disarmament,
including reductions in stockpiles and delivery systems and
thought-leadership on risk reduction, verification and
transparency. The UK also highlighted our leadership in
establishing the ‘Sustained Dialogue on Peaceful Uses’, a new
effort to increase access to the benefits of peaceful nuclear
technologies for development, including through meeting the UN
Sustainable Development Goals. We engaged constructively in the
negotiations throughout, seeking to reach agreement and to make
progress across all three pillars of the Treaty.
The lack of a consensus outcome neither undermines the Treaty nor
changes States’ obligations. Of the nine previous Review
Conferences, which have taken place almost every five years since
the Treaty came into force in 1970, only three have adopted a
comprehensive final document by consensus. Throughout, the Treaty
has remained vitally important for the UK and for the
international community as a whole, playing an unparalleled role
in curtailing the nuclear arms race and keeping the world safe.
The Action Plan adopted at the 2010 Conference remains valid as a
comprehensive roadmap for all States Party to the Treaty to
follow to take forward action on disarmament, non-proliferation
and peaceful use of nuclear technology, as do the consensus
outcomes from 2000 and 1995. The UK will continue to work closely
with our partners to strengthen the Treaty and make progress
against this roadmap, while also building on the successes of
this Conference.
In particular we look forward to contributing to the working
group on strengthening the review process and we will continue to
work with Norway on our initiative to clarify and apply the
principle of irreversibility. We will also be launching, with the
United States and 30 other partners who have joined so far, the
Sustained Dialogue on expanding access to the peaceful uses of
nuclear technologies.
The UK’s commitment to the Treaty and to fulfilling our
obligations, including under Article VI on disarmament, remains
undiminished. As a nuclear weapon State that takes our
responsibilities seriously and an original party to the Treaty,
the UK remains committed to creating the conditions for a world
without nuclear weapons. We have approximately halved our nuclear
stockpile since the Cold War peak and we continue to drive
research and discussion on risk reduction, verification and
transparency. We remain committed to working internationally to
reduce the risk of nuclear conflict and enhance mutual trust and
security. The UK will continue to play its part in bringing about
a safer world for all and achieving the long-term goal of a world
without nuclear weapons.
The Treaty is and will remain the fundamental cornerstone of the
nuclear non-proliferation regime and is the irreplaceable
foundation and framework for our common efforts on advancing
nuclear disarmament and the peaceful uses of nuclear technology.
The Conference decided to hold the eleventh Review Conference in
2026 in New York, with Preparatory Committees to take place in
2023 in Vienna, 2024 in Geneva and 2025 in New York. The UK will
continue to work alongside the international community at all of
these meetings to strengthen the regime and to promote
international stability, peace and security and will keep
Parliament updated.
