Nuclear weapons are the most dangerous weapons on earth. One can
destroy a whole city, potentially killing millions, and jeopardizing the
natural environment and lives of future generations through its
long-term catastrophic effects. The dangers from such weapons arise
from their very existence. Although nuclear weapons have only been
used twice in warfare—in the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in
1945—about 22,000 reportedly remain in our world today and there have
been over 2,000 nuclear tests conducted to date. Disarmament is the
best protection against such dangers, but achieving this goal has been a
tremendously difficult challenge.
Regional Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zones (NWFZ) have been
established to strengthen global nuclear non-proliferation and
disarmament norms and consolidate international efforts towards peace
and security.
The United Nations has sought to eliminate such weapons ever since its establishment. The
first resolution adopted by the UN General Assembly
in 1946 established a Commission to deal with problems related to the
discovery of atomic energy among others. The Commission was to make
proposals for,
inter alia, the control of atomic energy to the
extent necessary to ensure its use only for peaceful purposes. The
resolution also decided that the Commission should make proposals for
"the elimination from national armaments of atomic weapons and of all
other major weapons adaptable to mass destruction."
A number of multilateral treaties have since been established
with the aim of preventing nuclear proliferation and testing, while
promoting progress in nuclear disarmament. These include the
Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), the Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapon Tests In The Atmosphere, In Outer Space And Under Water, also known as the
Partial Test Ban Treaty (PTBT), and the
Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), which was signed in 1996 but has yet to enter into force.
A number of bilateral and plurilateral treaties and arrangements
seek to reduce or eliminate certain categories of nuclear weapons, to
prevent the proliferation of such weapons and their delivery vehicles.
These range from several treaties between the United States of
America and Russian Federation as well as various other initiatives,
to the
Nuclear Suppliers Group, the
Missile Technology Control Regime, the
Hague Code of Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation, and the
Wassenaar Arrangement.
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