Nuclear Weapon Ban Treaty Would Welcome Russia's Engagement - Austria Disarmament Chief

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd June, 2023) Disarmament and arms control director at the Austrian Foreign Ministry Alexander Kmentt told Sputnik on Friday it would be important for Russia to constructively engage on the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).

"It's very important, of course, but the TPNW is working on the legal dimension, but also working on the political dimension, so it would be important for Russia to engage constructively on the arguments of humanitarian consequences and risks, but we haven't seen that so far," Kmentt, who was the president of the First Meeting of the States-Parties to the TPNW, said.

When asked whether there have been contacts with Russia regarding the treaty, Kmentt noted that he personally had no� contacts in the preparation of the first meeting.

"I reached out to all the nuclear weapon states and informed them about what we are preparing and what we are planning. But I have not had any contact on the TPNW in the last few months and I don't know about others," he said.

Kmentt shared that at the moment there are several countries where the ratification of the treaty is in process, including several nations in Africa and Asia.

"Indonesia and Brazil are the two countries that are in the process of moving forward with ratification," he said.

With regards to when the announcements of the new members could be expected, the official said he could not give a specific timeline because every country's ratification process progresses at different speeds.

The TPNW, which was adopted by the United Nations in July 2017 and came into force in January 2021, prohibits the development, testing, production, stockpiling, use, transfer, and threat of use of nuclear weapons.

In October 2018, Russia, China, France the UK, and the US jointly declared that they opposed and would not sign the TPNW.

Russia firmly adheres to the position that the development of the accord was premature, erroneous and essentially counterproductive, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said last year.

The document does not take into account the military-political and military-strategic situation and runs counter to the principle that nuclear disarmament should be carried out in a way leading to "an increase in the level of security for all," she said.