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Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT)
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- Context (IE): Russia might revoke its Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) ratification to achieve parity with the US, which has not yet ratified CTBT.
- The CTBT bans ALL nuclear explosions for military or peaceful purposes. It was signed by 187 countries and ratified by 178.
- The UNGA adopted CTBT in 1996, but it has not entered into force, as eight Annex 2 nations (China, India, Pakistan, North Korea, Israel, Iran, Egypt, and the US) have not ratified the treaty.
- Annex 2 to the Treaty lists the 44 States (nuclear technology holder states) that must ratify the treaty for it to enter into force.
- The CTBT establishes the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), which ensures treaty implementation.
Signatories of CTBT
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Did the CTBT stop nuclear testing?
- Since the CTBT, ten nuclear tests have taken place. According to the UN:
- India conducted two in 1998.
- Pakistan also had two in 1998.
- North Korea conducted tests in 2006, 2009, 2013, 2016 (twice) and 2017.
- The United States last tested in 1992, China and France in 1996, and the Soviet Union in 1990.
- Russia, which inherited most of the Soviet nuclear arsenal, has never conducted a nuclear test.
History of CTBT
- The US conducted the world’s first successful nuclear weapons test in July 1945. Four years later, the Soviet Union tested their first nuclear weapon.
- These tests triggered an arms race between the two superpowers. Between 1945 and 1996, more than 2,000 nuclear tests were carried out.
- The radioactive fallout from those tests drew criticism from around the globe. As a result, several attempts were made to curb the explosive tests.
Limited Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty (LTBT) (1963)
- It prohibited nuclear testing in the atmosphere, outer space, and underwater, but underground tests were still permitted.
Threshold Test Ban Treaty (TTBT) (1974)
- It was signed between the US and the Soviet Union.
- It established a nuclear threshold and prohibited them from conducting tests that exceed 150 kilotons.
Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty
- Geopolitical tensions eased after the end of the Cold War and the disintegration of the Soviet Union.
- The UN took advantage of the situation and adopted the CTBT in 1996.