ISLAMABAD: The Treaty on Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, adopted by a vote on July 7 in New York, did not fulfil the essential conditions both in terms of process and substance — the right of each state to security and undiminished security for all states at the lowest possible level of armaments and military forces, the Foreign Office said here on Monday.

In a press statement on the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (Nuc­lear Weapons Ban Treaty), the FO argued that the treaties that did not fully take on board the interests of all stakeholders failed to achieve their objectives.

“Pakistan, therefore, like all the other nuclear armed states, did not take part in its negotiation and cannot become a party to this Treaty. Pakistan does not consider itself bound by any of the obligations enshrined in this Treaty. Pakistan stres­ses that this Treaty neither forms a part of, nor contributes to the development of customary international law in any manner.”

However, the statement reiterated that Pakistan was committed to the goal of a nuclear weapons-free world through the conclusion of a universal, verifiable and non-discri­minatory, comprehensive convention on nuclear weapons.

The Geneva-based Confe­rence on Disarmament remained the most ideal forum for concluding such a convention, it said.

Pakistan reaffirms its commitment to nuclear disarmament in a way that promotes peace, security and stability at the regional and global levels.

The United Nations General Assembly, at its first special session devoted to nuclear disarmament in 1978, had agreed by consensus that in the adoption of disarmament measures, the right of each state to security should be kept in mind, and at each stage of the disarmament process the objective would be undiminished security for all states at the lowest possible level of armaments and military forces.

“Pakistan believes that this cardinal objective can only be achieved as a cooperative and universally agreed undertaking, thro­ugh a consensus-based process involving all the relevant stakeholders, which results in equal and undiminished, if not increased security for all states,” the FO said, adding that it was indispensable for any initiative on nuclear disarmament to take into account the vital security considerations of each and every state.

Published in Dawn, August 8th, 2017