U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is urging all member states that have not yet done so to ratify the United Nations-backed treaty banning nuclear tests, saying it is important to build on the momentum made on disarmament and non-proliferation over the past year. In a message marking the first-ever International Day Against Nuclear Tests, which is observed on Sunday, the secretary-general said that “a world free of nuclear weapons is achievable,” and there had been important progress in 2010. “The successful conclusion of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference invigorated the nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation regime,” Ban said. “Bold initiatives by world leaders and civil society are showing the way toward changed policies and reduced arsenals.” The U.N. chief said he was looking forward “working with partners to rein in spending on nuclear programs and rid the world of the nuclear threat. A central pillar of this strategy is the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT).” Of the 182 countries that have signed the treaty, 153 have ratified it. Nine more countries-China, North Korea, India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Egypt, and the United States-must still ratify it before the pact can enter into force. Indonesia announced on 3 May that it had initiated the CTBT ratification process. The International Day Against Nuclear Tests was established by the U.N. General Assembly in January to enhance “public awareness and education about the effects of nuclear weapon test explosions or any other nuclear explosions and the need for their cessation as one of the means of achieving the goal of a nuclear-weapon-free world.”
