UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (full text)
| Portugal | Portugal did not participate in the negotiation of the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. It voted against the UN General Assembly resolution in 2016 that established the mandate for nations to negotiate the treaty. It claims that US nuclear weapons are essential for its security. |
Preamble
The States Parties to this Treaty,
Determined to contribute to the realization of
the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations,
Deeply concerned about the catastrophic humanitarian
consequences that would result from any use of nuclear weapons, and recognizing
the consequent need to completely eliminate such weapons, which remains the
only way to guarantee that nuclear weapons are never used again under any
circumstances,
Mindful of the risks posed by the continued existence of
nuclear weapons, including from any nuclear-weapon detonation by accident,
miscalculation or design, and emphasizing that these risks concern the security
of all humanity, and that all States share the responsibility to prevent any
use of nuclear weapons,
Cognizant that the catastrophic consequences
of nuclear weapons cannot be adequately addressed, transcend national borders,
pose grave implications for human survival, the environment, socioeconomic
development, the global economy, food security and the health of current and
future generations, and have a disproportionate impact on women and girls,
including as a result of ionizing radiation,
Acknowledging the ethical imperatives for nuclear
disarmament and the urgency of achieving and maintaining a nuclear-weapon-free
world, which is a global public good of the highest order, serving both
national and collective security interests,
Mindful of the unacceptable suffering of and harm caused to the
victims of the use of nuclear weapons (hibakusha), as well as of those affected
by the testing of nuclear weapons,
Recognizing the disproportionate impact of
nuclear-weapon activities on indigenous peoples,
Reaffirming the need for all States at all times
to comply with applicable international law, including international
humanitarian law and international human rights law,
Basing themselves on the principles and rules of
international humanitarian law, in particular the principle that the right of
parties to an armed conflict to choose methods or means of warfare is not
unlimited, the rule of distinction, the prohibition against indiscriminate
attacks, the rules on proportionality and precautions in attack, the
prohibition on the use of weapons of a nature to cause superfluous injury or
unnecessary suffering, and the rules for the protection of the natural
environment,
Considering that any use of nuclear weapons
would be contrary to the rules of international law applicable in armed
conflict, in particular the principles and rules of international humanitarian
law,
Reaffirming that any use of nuclear weapons
would also be abhorrent to the principles of humanity and the dictates of
public conscience,
Recalling that, in accordance with the Charter
of the United Nations, States must refrain in their international relations
from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political
independence of any State, or in any other manner inconsistent with the
Purposes of the United Nations, and that the establishment and maintenance of
international peace and security are to be promoted with the least diversion
for armaments of the world’s human and economic resources,
Recalling also the first resolution of the General
Assembly of the United Nations, adopted on 24 January 1946, and subsequent
resolutions which call for the elimination of nuclear weapons,
Concerned by the slow pace of nuclear
disarmament, the continued reliance on nuclear weapons in military and security
concepts, doctrines and policies, and the waste of economic and human resources
on programmes for the production, maintenance and modernization of nuclear
weapons,
Recognizing that a legally binding prohibition
of nuclear weapons constitutes an important contribution towards the
achievement and maintenance of a world free of nuclear weapons, including the
irreversible, verifiable and transparent elimination of nuclear weapons, and
determined to act towards that end,
Determined to act with a view to achieving
effective progress towards general and complete disarmament under strict and
effective international control,
Reaffirming that there exists an obligation to
pursue in good faith and bring to a conclusion negotiations leading to nuclear
disarmament in all its aspects under strict and effective international
control,
Reaffirming also that the full and effective
implementation of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, which
serves as the cornerstone of the nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation
regime, has a vital role to play in promoting international peace and security,
Recognizing the vital importance of the
Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty and its verification regime as a core
element of the nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation regime,
Reaffirming the conviction that the
establishment of the internationally recognized nuclear-weapon-free zones on
the basis of arrangements freely arrived at among the States of the region
concerned enhances global and regional peace and security, strengthens the
nuclear non-proliferation regime and contributes towards realizing the
objective of nuclear disarmament,
Emphasizing that nothing in this Treaty shall be
interpreted as affecting the inalienable right of its States Parties to develop
research, production and use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes without
discrimination,
Recognizing that the equal, full and effective
participation of both women and men is an essential factor for the promotion
and attainment of sustainable peace and security, and committed to supporting
and strengthening the effective participation of women in nuclear disarmament,
Recognizing also the importance of peace and
disarmament education in all its aspects and of raising awareness of the risks
and consequences of nuclear weapons for current and future generations, and
committed to the dissemination of the principles and norms of this Treaty,
Stressing the role of public conscience in the
furthering of the principles of humanity as evidenced by the call for the total
elimination of nuclear weapons, and recognizing the efforts to that end
undertaken by the United Nations, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent
Movement, other international and regional organizations, non-governmental
organizations, religious leaders, parliamentarians, academics and the
hibakusha,
Have agreed as follows:
Article 1
Prohibitions
1. Each State Party undertakes never under
any circumstances to:
(a) Develop, test, produce, manufacture,
otherwise acquire, possess or stockpile nuclear weapons or other nuclear
explosive devices;
(b) Transfer to any recipient whatsoever
nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices or control over such weapons
or explosive devices directly or indirectly;
(c) Receive the transfer of or control
over nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices directly or indirectly;
(d) Use or threaten to use nuclear weapons
or other nuclear explosive devices;
(e) Assist, encourage or induce, in any
way, anyone to engage in any activity prohibited to a State Party under this
Treaty;
(f) Seek or receive any assistance, in any
way, from anyone to engage in any activity prohibited to a State Party under
this Treaty;
(g) Allow any stationing, installation or
deployment of any nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices in its
territory or at any place under its jurisdiction or control.
Article 2
Declarations
1. Each State Party shall submit to the
Secretary-General of the United Nations, not later than 30 days after this
Treaty enters into force for that State Party, a declaration in which it shall:
(a) Declare whether it owned, possessed or
controlled nuclear weapons or nuclear explosive devices and eliminated its
nuclear-weapon programme, including the elimination or irreversible conversion
of all nuclear-weapons-related facilities, prior to the entry into force of
this Treaty for that State Party;
(b) Notwithstanding Article 1 (a), declare
whether it owns, possesses or controls any nuclear weapons or other nuclear
explosive devices;
(c) Notwithstanding Article 1 (g), declare
whether there are any nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices in its
territory or in any place under its jurisdiction or control that are owned,
possessed or controlled by another State.
2. The Secretary-General of the United
Nations shall transmit all such declarations received to the States Parties.
Article 3
Safeguards
1. Each State Party to which Article 4,
paragraph 1 or 2, does not apply shall, at a minimum, maintain its
International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards obligations in force at the time
of entry into force of this Treaty, without prejudice to any additional relevant
instruments that it may adopt in the future.
2. Each State Party to which Article 4,
paragraph 1 or 2, does not apply that has not yet done so shall conclude with
the International Atomic Energy Agency and bring into force a comprehensive
safeguards agreement (INFCIRC/153 (Corrected)). Negotiation of such agreement
shall commence within 180 days from the entry into force of this Treaty for
that State Party. The agreement shall enter into force no later than 18 months
from the entry into force of this Treaty for that State Party. Each State Party
shall thereafter maintain such obligations, without prejudice to any additional
relevant instruments that it may adopt in the future.
Article 4
Towards the total elimination of nuclear
weapons
1. Each State Party that after 7 July 2017
owned, possessed or controlled nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive
devices and eliminated its nuclear-weapon programme, including the elimination
or irreversible conversion of all nuclear-weapons-related facilities, prior to
the entry into force of this Treaty for it, shall cooperate with the competent
international authority designated pursuant to paragraph 6 of this Article for
the purpose of verifying the irreversible elimination of its nuclear-weapon
programme. The competent international authority shall report to the States
Parties. Such a State Party shall conclude a safeguards agreement with the
International Atomic Energy Agency sufficient to provide credible assurance of
the non-diversion of declared nuclear material from peaceful nuclear activities
and of the absence of undeclared nuclear material or activities in that State
Party as a whole. Negotiation of such agreement shall commence within 180 days
from the entry into force of this Treaty for that State Party. The agreement
shall enter into force no later than 18 months from the entry into force of
this Treaty for that State Party. That State Party shall thereafter, at a
minimum, maintain these safeguards obligations, without prejudice to any
additional relevant instruments that it may adopt in the future.
2. Notwithstanding Article 1 (a), each
State Party that owns, possesses or controls nuclear weapons or other nuclear
explosive devices shall immediately remove them from operational status, and
destroy them as soon as possible but not later than a deadline to be determined
by the first meeting of States Parties, in accordance with a legally binding,
time-bound plan for the verified and irreversible elimination of that State
Party’s nuclear-weapon programme, including the elimination or irreversible
conversion of all nuclear-weapons-related facilities. The State Party, no later
than 60 days after the entry into force of this Treaty for that State Party,
shall submit this plan to the States Parties or to a competent international
authority designated by the States Parties. The plan shall then be negotiated
with the competent international authority, which shall submit it to the
subsequent meeting of States Parties or review conference, whichever comes
first, for approval in accordance with its rules of procedure.
3. A State Party to which paragraph 2
above applies shall conclude a safeguards agreement with the International
Atomic Energy Agency sufficient to provide credible assurance of the
non-diversion of declared nuclear material from peaceful nuclear activities and
of the absence of undeclared nuclear material or activities in the State as a
whole. Negotiation of such agreement shall commence no later than the date upon
which implementation of the plan referred to in paragraph 2 is completed. The
agreement shall enter into force no later than 18 months after the date of
initiation of negotiations. That State Party shall thereafter, at a minimum,
maintain these safeguards obligations, without prejudice to any additional
relevant instruments that it may adopt in the future. Following the entry into
force of the agreement referred to in this paragraph, the State Party shall
submit to the Secretary-General of the United Nations a final declaration that
it has fulfilled its obligations under this Article.
4. Notwithstanding Article 1 (b) and (g),
each State Party that has any nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive
devices in its territory or in any place under its jurisdiction or control that
are owned, possessed or controlled by another State shall ensure the prompt
removal of such weapons, as soon as possible but not later than a deadline to
be determined by the first meeting of States Parties. Upon the removal of such
weapons or other explosive devices, that State Party shall submit to the
Secretary-General of the United Nations a declaration that it has fulfilled its
obligations under this Article.
5. Each State Party to which this Article
applies shall submit a report to each meeting of States Parties and each review
conference on the progress made towards the implementation of its obligations
under this Article, until such time as they are fulfilled.
6. The States Parties shall designate a
competent international authority or authorities to negotiate and verify the
irreversible elimination of nuclear-weapons programmes, including the
elimination or irreversible conversion of all nuclear-weapons-related
facilities in accordance with paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of this Article. In the
event that such a designation has not been made prior to the entry into force
of this Treaty for a State Party to which paragraph 1 or 2 of this Article
applies, the Secretary-General of the United Nations shall convene an
extraordinary meeting of States Parties to take any decisions that may be
required.
Article 5
National implementation
1. Each State Party shall adopt the
necessary measures to implement its obligations under this Treaty.
2. Each State Party shall take all
appropriate legal, administrative and other measures, including the imposition
of penal sanctions, to prevent and suppress any activity prohibited to a State
Party under this Treaty undertaken by persons or on territory under its
jurisdiction or control.
Article 6
Victim assistance and environmental
remediation
1. Each State Party shall, with respect to
individuals under its jurisdiction who are affected by the use or testing of
nuclear weapons, in accordance with applicable international humanitarian and
human rights law, adequately provide age- and gender-sensitive assistance,
without discrimination, including medical care, rehabilitation and
psychological support, as well as provide for their social and economic
inclusion.
2. Each State Party, with respect to areas
under its jurisdiction or control contaminated as a result of activities
related to the testing or use of nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive
devices, shall take necessary and appropriate measures towards the
environmental remediation of areas so contaminated.
3. The obligations under paragraphs 1 and
2 above shall be without prejudice to the duties and obligations of any other
States under international law or bilateral agreements.
Article 7
International cooperation and assistance
1. Each State Party shall cooperate with
other States Parties to facilitate the implementation of this Treaty.
2. In fulfilling its obligations under
this Treaty, each State Party shall have the right to seek and receive
assistance, where feasible, from other States Parties.
3. Each State Party in a position to do so
shall provide technical, material and financial assistance to States Parties
affected by nuclear-weapons use or testing, to further the implementation of
this Treaty.
4. Each State Party in a position to do so
shall provide assistance for the victims of the use or testing of nuclear
weapons or other nuclear explosive devices.
5. Assistance under this Article may be
provided, inter alia, through the United Nations system, international,
regional or national organizations or institutions, non‑governmental organizations
or institutions, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, or national
Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, or on a bilateral basis.
6. Without prejudice to any other duty or
obligation that it may have under international law, a State Party that has
used or tested nuclear weapons or any other nuclear explosive devices shall
have a responsibility to provide adequate assistance to affected States
Parties, for the purpose of victim assistance and environmental remediation.
Article 8
Meeting of States Parties
1. The States Parties shall meet regularly
in order to consider and, where necessary, take decisions in respect of any
matter with regard to the application or implementation of this Treaty, in
accordance with its relevant provisions, and on further measures for nuclear
disarmament, including:
(a) The implementation and status of this
Treaty;
(b) Measures for the verified, time-bound
and irreversible elimination of nuclear-weapon programmes, including additional
protocols to this Treaty;
(c) Any other matters pursuant to and
consistent with the provisions of this Treaty.
2. The first meeting of States Parties
shall be convened by the Secretary-General of the United Nations within one
year of the entry into force of this Treaty. Further meetings of States Parties
shall be convened by the Secretary-General of the United Nations on a biennial
basis, unless otherwise agreed by the States Parties. The meeting of States
Parties shall adopt its rules of procedure at its first session. Pending their
adoption, the rules of procedure of the United Nations conference to negotiate
a legally binding instrument to prohibit nuclear weapons, leading towards their
total elimination, shall apply.
3. Extraordinary meetings of States
Parties shall be convened, as may be deemed necessary, by the Secretary-General
of the United Nations, at the written request of any State Party provided that
this request is supported by at least one third of the States Parties.
4. After a period of five years following
the entry into force of this Treaty, the Secretary-General of the United
Nations shall convene a conference to review the operation of the Treaty and
the progress in achieving the purposes of the Treaty. The Secretary-General of
the United Nations shall convene further review conferences at intervals of six
years with the same objective, unless otherwise agreed by the States Parties.
5. States not party to this Treaty, as
well as the relevant entities of the United Nations system, other relevant
international organizations or institutions, regional organizations, the
International Committee of the Red Cross, the International Federation of Red
Cross and Red Crescent Societies and relevant non-governmental organizations,
shall be invited to attend the meetings of States Parties and the review
conferences as observers.
Article 9
Costs
1. The costs of the meetings of States
Parties, the review conferences and the extraordinary meetings of States Parties
shall be borne by the States Parties and States not party to this Treaty
participating therein as observers, in accordance with the United Nations scale
of assessment adjusted appropriately.
2. The costs incurred by the
Secretary-General of the United Nations in the circulation of declarations
under Article 2, reports under Article 4 and proposed amendments under Article
10 of this Treaty shall be borne by the States Parties in accordance with the
United Nations scale of assessment adjusted appropriately.
3. The cost related to the implementation
of verification measures required under Article 4 as well as the costs related
to the destruction of nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices, and
the elimination of nuclear-weapon programmes, including the elimination or
conversion of all nuclear-weapons-related facilities, should be borne by the
States Parties to which they apply.
Article 10
Amendments
1. At any time after the entry into force
of this Treaty, any State Party may propose amendments to the Treaty. The text
of a proposed amendment shall be communicated to the Secretary-General of the
United Nations, who shall circulate it to all States Parties and shall seek
their views on whether to consider the proposal. If a majority of the States
Parties notify the Secretary-General of the United Nations no later than 90
days after its circulation that they support further consideration of the
proposal, the proposal shall be considered at the next meeting of States
Parties or review conference, whichever comes first.
2. A meeting of States Parties or a review
conference may agree upon amendments which shall be adopted by a positive vote
of a majority of two thirds of the States Parties. The Depositary shall
communicate any adopted amendment to all States Parties.
3. The amendment shall enter into force
for each State Party that deposits its instrument of ratification or acceptance
of the amendment 90 days following the deposit of such instruments of
ratification or acceptance by a majority of the States Parties at the time of
adoption. Thereafter, it shall enter into force for any other State Party 90
days following the deposit of its instrument of ratification or acceptance of
the amendment.
Article 11
Settlement of disputes
1. When a dispute arises between two or
more States Parties relating to the interpretation or application of this
Treaty, the parties concerned shall consult together with a view to the
settlement of the dispute by negotiation or by other peaceful means of the
parties’ choice in accordance with Article 33 of the Charter of the United
Nations.
2. The meeting of States Parties may
contribute to the settlement of the dispute, including by offering its good
offices, calling upon the States Parties concerned to start the settlement
procedure of their choice and recommending a time limit for any agreed
procedure, in accordance with the relevant provisions of this Treaty and the
Charter of the United Nations.
Article 12
Universality
Each State Party shall encourage States
not party to this Treaty to sign, ratify, accept, approve or accede to the
Treaty, with the goal of universal adherence of all States to the Treaty.
Article 13
Signature
This Treaty shall be open for signature to
all States at United Nations Headquarters in New York as from 20 September
2017.
Article 14
Ratification, acceptance, approval or
accession
This Treaty shall be subject to
ratification, acceptance or approval by signatory States. The Treaty shall be
open for accession.
Article 15
Entry into force
1. This Treaty shall enter into force 90
days after the fiftieth instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or
accession has been deposited.
2. For any State that deposits its
instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession after the date of
the deposit of the fiftieth instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or
accession, this Treaty shall enter into force 90 days after the date on which
that State has deposited its instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval
or accession.
Article 16
Reservations
The Articles of this Treaty shall not be
subject to reservations.
Article 17
Duration and withdrawal
1. This Treaty shall be of unlimited
duration.
2. Each State Party shall, in exercising
its national sovereignty, have the right to withdraw from this Treaty if it
decides that extraordinary events related to the subject matter of the Treaty
have jeopardized the supreme interests of its country. It shall give notice of
such withdrawal to the Depositary. Such notice shall include a statement of the
extraordinary events that it regards as having jeopardized its supreme
interests.
3. Such withdrawal shall only take effect
12 months after the date of the receipt of the notification of withdrawal by
the Depositary. If, however, on the expiry of that 12-month period, the
withdrawing State Party is a party to an armed conflict, the State Party shall
continue to be bound by the obligations of this Treaty and of any additional
protocols until it is no longer party to an armed conflict.
Article 18
Relationship with other agreements
The implementation of this Treaty shall
not prejudice obligations undertaken by States Parties with regard to existing
international agreements, to which they are party, where those obligations are
consistent with the Treaty.
Article 19
Depositary
The Secretary-General of the United
Nations is hereby designated as the Depositary of this Treaty.
Article 20
Authentic texts
The Arabic, Chinese, English, French,
Russian and Spanish texts of this Treaty shall be equally authentic.
DONE at New York, this seventh day of
July, two thousand and seventeen.
“Governments say a nuclear weapons ban is
unlikely. Don’t believe it. They said the same about a mine ban treaty.”
Jody WilliamsNobel laureate
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