Signs that China could ratify test ban but US, North Korea snub treaty

VIENNA (AFP) Sep 03, 2003
Signs that China may soon ratify a global nuclear test ban brought some hope to a conference on the 1996 treaty here Wednesday as diplomats urged the United States and North Korea to stop blocking its enforcement.

China "seems ready to ratify" the Comprehensive Test Ban TreatyWolfgang Hoffmann, the secretary general of the three-day meeting, told AFP.

"They seem ready to ratify. I got this impression from talks I had last July in Beijing with both sides, civilian and military," he added.

China is one of 12 countries, including the world's biggest nuclear power the United States, whose refusal to sign or ratify the treaty is preventing it from entering into force.

"The question is no longer whether China will sign the ratification document, but when," a source close to the conference told AFP. "If they do this, it will be a big step towards ensuring that the treaty enters into force."

But also diplomats warned that the treaty could yet collapse if Pyongyang and Washington -- neither of whom sent delegates to the conference -- continue to snub it.

The meeting opened with a plea from UN Secretary General Kofi Annan for "all these states that have yet to sign or ratify the treaty to do so without delay."

"Given the latest developments, I particularly direct this call to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea), as well as to the other states whose ratification is needed for the treaty to enter into force," he said in a message read to delegates.

The North Korean parliament on Wednesday endorsed a government decision to boost the Stalinist state's nuclear weapons drive, saying it was necessary to protect the nation after Washington rejected Pyongyang's demands for a non-aggression pact at six-party nuclear crisis talks in Beijing last week.

"I am disappointed by this step," said Erkki Tuomioja, the Finnish foreign minister and president of the CTBT conference told AFP.

The meeting is the third of its kind aimed to try to persuade all countries to come into line with the CTBT, following earlier conferences in Vienna and New York.

Countries who sign the treaty agree not to conduct any kind of nuclear testing.

So far, 168 nations have agreed not to carry out nuclear tests, and 104 have obtained full ratification of the treaty from their national parliaments, including nuclear powers Britain, France and Russia.

The United States, which is studying new kinds of small "bunker-busting" nuclear weapons, signed the CTBT in 1996, becoming one of the first states to do so.

But the US Senate in 2000 refused to ratify the treaty and Washington has since indicated it has no intention of doing so.

Under the treaty rules, the 44 nations that had nuclear research or power facilities when it was adopted in 1996 must ratify it.

Iran, which is accused by the United States of trying to develop nuclear arms, is also among the states which have yet to ratify the treaty.

Pakistan and India -- which both conducted nuclear tests in May 1998, after the comprehensive test ban came into effect -- have not even signed the CTBT.

Japan and France on Wednesday echoed Annan's call on all outstanding countries to sign the accord.

"France again calls on countries who have not yet signed or ratified the treaty to come into line with the rest of the international community," Renaud Musselier, the French secretary of state for foreign affairs, told delegates.

"This appeal is supported by the European Union."

Japanese Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi urged: "The early entry into force of the CTBT will tangibly help realise the noble objective of a safe and peaceful world free of nuclear weapons."

WAR.WIRE