MOSCOW, March 10. /TASS/. The issue of holding the next Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons in New York has once again been left hanging in the air due to political developments, Deputy Director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Department for Non-Proliferation and Arms Control Igor Vishnevetsky said at a discussion hosted by the Valdai International Discussion Club on Thursday.
"The issue of whether the New York-hosted conference should or should not be held has once again been left hanging in the air. It is about August. As you understand, geopolitics has intervened. In the current situation, it’s hard to hold any serious events without the Ukraine issue affecting it all," he pointed out.
According to Vishnevetsky, Moscow would like the review conference to take place in a constructive atmosphere despite the tense global situation. "I just can say that there are a number of platforms where Russia’s delegations are present but our representatives have to face obstruction as foreign delegations walk out and refuse to listen to what we say, thus expressing their attitude towards developments in Ukraine. I’d hate to see such an event take place in this kind of atmosphere," he added. The Russian diplomat added that it would have been difficult to agree on anything in the current situation.
The Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) was earlier postponed due to the spread of the Omicron coronavirus variant. Japan’s Kyodo news agency reported in late 2021, citing diplomatic sources, that the conference might be held on August 1-26, 2022.
The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, signed in 1968, made the nuclear arsenals of the United Kingdom, Russia, China, France, and the United States legal, confirming their status as nuclear powers. Other countries agreed 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 and North Korea withdrew from it in January 2003.