MOSCOW, January 3. /TASS/. The Joint Statement of the Leaders of the Five Nuclear-Weapons States on Preventing Nuclear War and Avoiding Arms Races has been agreed through diplomatic channels, and the text fully reflects the positions of both its signatories in general and each leader in particular, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told TASS on Monday.
"It was negotiated through diplomatic channels. The text comprehensively reflects the positions of the parties and the leaders," he said when asked how the countries had approved the statement.
According to Kremlin Spokesman, the timeframe for a potential summit of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (Russia, the United Kingdom, the United States, China and France, also known as the P5) has not been set yet.
"There are no dates yet," the presidential press secretary said when asked whether it was possible to outline a tentative timeframe for such a summit.
Earlier in the day, the leaders of the five nuclear powers and permanent members of the United Nations Security Council adopted a joint statement. The leaders emphasized that they consider "the avoidance of war between Nuclear-Weapon States and the reduction of strategic risks as our foremost responsibilities." They affirmed that "a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought." They spoke out against the further spread of nuclear weapons and underlined their "desire to work with all states to create a security environment."
The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, also called Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, was signed in 1968. It made the nuclear arsenals of the United Kingdom, Russia, China, France, and the United States legal, confirming their status as nuclear-weapon states. Other states agree to "forgo developing or acquiring nuclear weapons." The treaty has been signed by more than 190 countries. India, Pakistan, and Israel remain outside the treaty. In January 2003, North Korea withdrew from it.