Global Security Newswire

A group of 10 nations on Saturday called on the rest of the world to do more to halt the spread of nuclear-weapon materials and technology, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, April 28).

The aim of the so-called Friends of the Nonproliferation Treaty is to "work toward achieving nuclear disarmament and a strengthening of the of the international nonproliferation regime," the chief diplomats of the 10 nations said in a combined declaration.

The countries -- Australia, Canada, Chile, Japan, Germany, Mexico, the Netherlands, Poland, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates -- met in Berlin over the weekend to brainstorm ways to enhance the nonproliferation regime. The group was formed following the 2010 Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty review conference.

Australian Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd criticized the lack of progress nearly one year since the monthlong gathering in New York: "We have seen very little practical work done" (see GSN, June 1, 2010).

Rudd and his counterparts said it remains crucial to address the "danger to humanity posed by the possibility of the use of nuclear weapons" and to take concrete steps toward global nuclear disarmament.

The generation of weapon-usable nuclear material should be prohibited on a global scale "to curb the risk of future nuclear arms races and reduce the danger of nonstate actors getting such material into their hands," according to their joint statement.

After a decade-long impasse, the international Conference on Disarmament in 2009 agreed to a work plan that would focus on a fissile material cutoff treaty and three other issues: nuclear disarmament, a ban against space-based armaments, and an agreement by nuclear-armed states not to use such weapons against nations that do not have atomic arsenals of their own. While Pakistan at first agreed to the work plan, it later canceled its consent and demanded further consideration of the program. Decisions at the 65-member nation conference are made by consensus (see GSN, April 26).

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said the coalition also concurred that the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty should be ratified by all nations in short order and that nuclear-armed states should increase openness regarding their stockpiles.

The global prohibition on nuclear test blasts is awaiting ratification by nine specific states -- China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, North Korea, Pakistan and the United States -- before it can enter into force (see GSN, March 29).

"We call on all states which have not yet done so to sign and ratify the CTBT," the 10 foreign ministers said.

"We believe that an effective end to nuclear testing will enhance and not weaken our national as well as global security and would significantly bolster the global nonproliferation and disarmament regime," they added.

The coalition also emphasized the crucial work done by the International Atomic Energy Agency in ensuring that nations meet their commitments as member states to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. International antinuclear requirements should be additionally enhanced, they said (Juergen Baetz, Associated Press/Yahoo!News, April 30).