ACT NOW ON THE NUCLEAR NON-PROLIFERATION TREATY

Abdul Qadeer Khan, Pakistan’s nuclear godfather who is reputed to have sold nuclear secrets to several countries

The five-yearly Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty takes place in May this year in New York. It is vitally important that the treaty should address both vertical proliferation (development of nuclear weapons by states which already have them) as well as horizontal proliferation (the spread of nuclear weapons to countries which do not at present possess them). Preparatory Committees have met over the last four years to set the agenda for the Review Conference, but most have ended in deadlock because the US insists that there is no need to discuss vertical proliferation. There is a real danger that the Review Conference could result in the collapse of the NPT, leading to a nuclear free-for-all. Already, reports suggest that the US will attempt to invalidate the Final Document of the 2000 Review Conference, under which the five declared nuclear states (China, France, Russia, UK and US) re-affirmed their commitment to nuclear disarmament.

We have to work to ensure that the Review Conference is a success for nuclear disarmament and for non-proliferation. Neither is possible without the other.
If would help if you could write to your MP to stress the following points:

l the UK should honour its disarmament obligations under the final document of the 2000 NPT Review Conference.

l the conference should deal with vertical as well as horizontal proliferation