Conference on Facilitating CTBT to Convene Today

The Conference on Facilitating the Entry into Force of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty was scheduled to begin its three-day meeting today in New York, according to a U.N. press release (see GSN, Sept. 14).

The meeting — the fourth since U.N. General Assembly adopted the treaty in 1996 — will determine which measures can be taken to quicken the treaty’s ratification process and hasten its entry into force. A number of countries that have not signed or ratified the treaty are expected to do so before or during the conference, according to the release (U.N. release, Sept. 12).

The Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization today announced that Lebanon has signed the pact, while Vanuatu and Madagascar have deposited their instruments of ratification.

The treaty now has 176 member states, 125 of which have submitted their ratification papers. The treaty has 33 of the 44 signatures needed to bring the pact into force (Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization releases, Sept. 21).

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