Image: Members of the Warheads to Windmills met with Ambassador H.E. Mrs. Vanessa Frazier (3rd from right) of the Malta Mission to the United Nations in New York
First a country’s President or Prime Minister must sign a treaty. Then a country’s parliament or congress must ratify the treaty. The final step is to implement the treaty, normally by passing legislation to enforce its provisions and penalize any violations of those provisions. In the case of Ireland, national legislation was passed in 2019 to implement the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW or “Nuclear Ban Treaty”) in Ireland. This legislation makes it an offense for any person or corporation to have anything to do with nuclear weapons in Ireland, including providing any kind of assistance with the development, manufacture, deployment or transportation, etc of nuclear weapons. And it imposes a jail sentence of up to life in prison for any violation of this law.
We don’t know what legislation has or has not been passed in other countries who are already parties to the TPNW. But we spent this week in New York trying to find out.
Warheads to Windmills Coalition representatives visited UN Missions in New York from July 15 to July 17, 2024, representing countries such as Viet Nam, Holy See, Kiribati, Malta, Austria, Ireland, Uruguay, Tuvalu, Mexico, and Malaysia.
These discussions focused on NuclearBan.US’s working paper proposal submitted to the 2MSP to establish a working group for Article 5 on National Implementation. There are already working groups focusing on Articles 6 and 7 on victim assistance, environmental remediation, and international cooperation, Article 4 on nuclear disarmament verification, and Article 12 on universalization.
Article 5 underscores each State Party’s obligations to uphold the treaty and emphasizes the necessity of implementing legal and administrative measures to prevent and suppress any prohibited activities within their jurisdiction. These discussions underscored the significance of Article 5 and explored the potential for establishing a working group to facilitate National Implementation among States Parties to the TPNW.
During our visit, we were pleased to have fruitful meetings with various Permanent Missions to the United Nations and International Organizations. The representatives not only offered their support for our initiatives but also provided insightful suggestions and recommendations, which are crucial in paving the way for fruitful collaborations and actionable steps to move forward.
Image: Members of Warheads to Windmills met with Counsellor Ms. Vu Thi Mai Lien (3rd from right) of the Viet Nam Mission to the United Nations in New York