NPT review conference ends without consensus as chair warns on treaty health

A United Nations meeting reviewing the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty ended without agreement on a final outcome document. The talks ran for four weeks and closed with no consensus among member states. The chair said the failure raised concerns about the treaty’s condition. The conference took place as tensions grew over Iran’s nuclear programme.

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The Eleventh Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons NPT was held at UN headquarters from April 27 to May 22. It met during rising friction involving the US, Israel and Iran. Iran’s nuclear programme remained a key backdrop to the discussions and the wider diplomatic climate.

NPT review conference ends without consensus on outcome document

"I have to say that I am disappointed that the review conference was unable to reach consensus on an outcome document and really seize this critical opportunity to make our world a safer place,\" President of the Conference Permanent Representative of Viet Nam to the United Nations Ambassador Do Hung Viet told reporters at a late evening press conference Friday. The comments came as the meeting formally wrapped up.

Ambassador Do Hung Viet said delegations held serious exchanges during the sessions. \"He said member states had some very good discussions, very honest reflection on the current situation and the state of the NPT, and what can be done to improve that.\" The chair noted that many ideas were explored, even though a final text was not approved.

\"In fact those discussions have provided us with some very good substantive outcomes that unfortunately could not be adopted, but nevertheless are good outcomes,\" he said. Ambassador Do Hung Viet added that the present global setting carried higher nuclear danger. The chair said this environment called for urgent steps from states parties.

NPT treaty role in nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation

The chair said the treaty still played a central part in global efforts on disarmament and non-proliferation. It also supported the peaceful use of nuclear energy, according to the UN. \"A substantive outcome would have strengthened the treaty and advanced its objectives, but in absence of such an outcome, I am concerned for the future health of the treaty,\" he said.

The UN said the NPT aims to stop the spread of nuclear weapons and support nuclear disarmament. It also links to the wider goal of general and complete disarmament. Another goal is to support co-operation on peaceful nuclear energy. The UN described it as the only multilateral treaty with a legally binding disarmament pledge for nuclear-weapon States.

The treaty entered into force in 1970, and 191 states parties have joined since then. Review conferences have been held every five years after 1970. The UN noted one exception during the COVID-19 pandemic. The latest meeting examined treaty implementation since 2022 across three pillars.

Those three pillars are nuclear disarmament, non-proliferation, and the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, the UN said. Without an agreed document, member states left with unresolved differences on key issues. The chair still pointed to substantive ideas produced during the talks. The conference ended with warnings about rising risks in the current international climate.

With inputs from PTI