MOSCOW, August 2. /TASS/. Moscow has called upon Washington to reconsider its prejudices and misconceptions regarding the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) and proceed with the process of ratifying it, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at a briefing on Wednesday.

"We urge the US, as a country that claims to have an authoritative voice in arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation matters, to reconsider its prejudices and misconceptions regarding the CTBT, embrace responsibility and take a step in the right direction," the diplomat noted.

"I understand that it won’t be easy, but there is a need to ratify the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, rejecting the temptation to resume nuclear tests under one pretext or another," Zakharova pointed out.

She stressed that "the treaty, which was supposed to be the next milestone after the Moscow Treaty (banning nuclear weapons tests in the atmosphere, in outer space, and underwater - TASS), ending all kinds of nuclear tests once and for all, never actually took effect in the past 25 years." According to the diplomat, "the destructive and irresponsible behavior of the US" was the reason.

"In 2018, they [the Americans] officially refused to ratify the treaty and have continued to stick to this position," she went on to say. "We consider this conclusion drawn by the US authorities as a sign of their lack of political will, as well as proof of Washington’s inability to make agreements and unwillingness to respect its international legal obligations pertaining to nuclear non-proliferation and arms control," Zakharova emphasized.

The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty was approved by the United Nations General Assembly on September 24, 1996. The document bans nuclear charge test explosions along with nuclear blasts for peaceful purposes. The ban applies to all areas (in the atmosphere, in space, underwater and underground) and is absolute and comprehensive. The treaty has not entered into force yet because the United States, Egypt, Israel, Iran and China have not ratified it, while India, North Korea and Pakistan have not signed it.