International Day against Nuclear Tests - 29 August

Since the International Day against Nuclear Tests was first declared, there have been a number of significant developments, discussions and initiatives relevant to its goals and objectives as well as conferences convened to elaborate and advance these developments.

2012 developments

The United States hosted the third “P5” Conference in Washington, D.C. in late June of this year in which China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States discussed cooperation on nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament, establishing a standard form of reporting, transparency and mutual confidence-building measures. The P5 also reaffirmed their continued commitment to promote the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) and its universalization.

From 30 April-11 May 2012, the First Preparatory Committee for the 2015 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) met in Vienna, Austria. The meeting allowed States to review the operation of the NPT and was the first opportunity since the 2010 adoption of an Action Plan to assess activities carried out by Sates and to consider what could be improved upon. Speaking for the first time in her new capacity as United Nations High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, Angela Kane told the meeting that it is “the review process that helps to sustain the NPT as a living Treaty that is periodically assessed in light of the ever-evolving political and strategic circumstances of our times.”
A follow-up to the 2010 Nuclear Security Summit, which had been convened by US President Barak Obama in Washington DC, the 2012 Nuclear Security Summit took place this past March in Seoul, Korea with expanded participation. World leaders renewed commitments made at the 2010 conference including to continue to use the Work Plan of the Washington Summit as the framework for strengthening nuclear security, and to cooperate internationally on a coherent approach to “ensure the secure peaceful uses of nuclear energy.”

The Conference marking the 45th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Ttatelolco took place in Mexico City in February 2012. The Treaty is an agreement among Latin American and Caribbean countries on the prohibition of nuclear weapons in their region. There are now 33 countries participating in this nuclear-weapons-free-zone (NWFZ). As International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Yukiya Amano noted, this treaty was the motivation for several treaties around the world in Africa, Asia and the South Pacific. There are now 133 countries which belong to NWFZs.

International Day against Nuclear Tests - 29 August