Baku, Azerbaijan, August 30
By Nargiz Sadikhova - Trend:
Kazakhstan has deposited with the United Nations Secretariat the ratification instrument to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), Trend reports with reference to the press office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan.
The ceremony took place in Nur-Sultan on the International Day against Nuclear Tests, August 29th. This year, the UN officially commemorates the Tenth Anniversary of the Day.
The event was attended by representatives of the United Nations and the international movement ICAN, which is a coalition of more than 500 non-governmental organizations from 103 countries committed to banning nuclear weapons. They thanked Kazakhstan for its strong commitment and leadership in nuclear disarmament.
Handing over the document to the depository, the Permanent Representative of Kazakhstan to the United Nations Kairat Umarov noted that this event was another important practical contribution of Kazakhstan to the global efforts to build a world free of nuclear weapons.
“Kazakhstan had participated actively in the elaboration and adoption of the Treaty. Its main provisions are in line with the principled position of Kazakhstan, which has taken an ambitious path of becoming a leader in nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation after being a one-time holder of the world's fourth nuclear arsenal,” the report said.
As stated by the press office, Kazakhstan’s continued anti-nuclear efforts are guided by the initiative of the country's First President Nursultan Nazarbayev to achieve a nuclear-weapon-free world by 2045, the UN's centenary. The adoption therefore of the Nuclear Ban Treaty is intended to be an important milestone in the history of the struggle to eliminate nuclear weapons.
The ratification by 50 states is necessary for the Treaty to enter into force.
The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons was adopted on July 7, 2017 with the support of 122 UN Member States. It was the outcome of two sessions of the UN Conference to negotiate a legally binding instrument to prohibit nuclear weapons that would lead towards their total elimination. The Conference took place in March and June-July 2017 in New York.
Kazakhstan became the 57th signatory state of the TPNW (on March 2, 2018) and the 26th state to ratify the Treaty (deposited on August 29, 2019).
---
Follow the author on twitter: @nargiz_sadikh