UNITED NATIONS, September 27. /TASS/. Russia intends to observe the moratorium on nuclear tests if other states do so, Russian First Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Dmitry Polyansky said, speaking at the Security Council meeting Monday.

"Russia intends to observe this moratorium in the future, should other nuclear powers exercise the same approach," he said.

The diplomat also noted that "the voluntary moratorium on nuclear tests is a temporary, interim measure that cannot replace legal obligations of states under an international treaty and support the effect of joint actions of the global community, should it be violated."

The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) was adopted by the UN General Assembly on September 10, 1996. On September 24 that year, the document became open for signing, but it has still not entered into effect, because it must be ratified by the 44 states, listed in the annex to the treaty. Currently, the treaty was signed, but not ratified by the US, China, Egypt, Israel and Iran, while three "young" nuclear powers - India, Pakistan and North Korea - did not sign it at all.