Beijing urges nations to honor key nuclear pacts

The Chinese envoy to the United Nations on Monday expounded Beijing's position regarding the recent cooperation of "relevant countries "on nuclear submarines and urged them "to faithfully fulfill their international nuclear nonproliferation obligations".

Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the UN, told a Security Council high-level meeting on the nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction that China opposes double standards on nuclear nonproliferation issues.

Both the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, or CTBT, and the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, or NPT, are important pillars of the international nuclear disarmament and nuclear nonproliferation regime.

The CTBT, a multilateral treaty that bans nations from carrying out nuclear test explosions, was adopted by the UN General Assembly in September 1996. The pact has yet to become an international law as eight countries designated as nuclear technology holders still need to sign or ratify it.

The NPT is an international treaty with the aim of preventing the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology. It opened for signatures in 1968 and entered into force in 1970.

With 191 states joining the treaty, the UN said it represents the "only binding commitment" in a multilateral treaty to disarmament by nuclear-weapon states.

As part of the accord, states with nuclear weapons agreed to pursue nuclear disarmament and that they will not help non-nuclear states manufacture or acquire nuclear weapons. States without nuclear weapons agreed not to acquire nuclear weapons. All parties agreed that they can access nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.

"While promoting the early entry into force of the CTBT, the international community should also conscientiously safeguard the authority, universality and effectiveness of the NPT," Zhang said.

"All states should demonstrate a responsible attitude. China objects to a utilitarian approach to the NPT or the application of double standards thereto."

'Arms race'

Zhang's remarks came after the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia struck an agreement over nuclear submarines. In a trilateral security partnership known as AUKUS, the US and the UK－both parties to the NPT－agreed to support Australia, a non-nuclear-weapon state, in developing nuclear-powered submarines.

"It's wrong of a scant few nuclear-weapon states to make high-sounding pronouncements about their commitment to the international nuclear nonproliferation regime while assisting non-nuclear weapon states in building nuclear submarines," Zhang said.

"Not only will it intensify the arms race to the detriment of the international nonproliferation regime as well as international and regional security and stability, it also runs counter to the spirit of the NPT."

The ambassador called on these countries to "heed the call of the international community, faithfully fulfill their international nonproliferation obligations, and put in greater effort toward regional peace and stability".