Lavrov notified the UN Secretary General of the withdrawal of ratification of the CTBT

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov sent a message to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on the withdrawal of the instrument of ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), reported at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“The most destructive position regarding the treaty has been taken by the United States, which has been avoiding its ratification under far-fetched pretexts for almost a quarter of a century. This could not continue forever,” the message says.

The Foreign Ministry added that in conditions when the United States “is pursuing a deeply hostile course towards our country, maintaining the previous imbalance in approaches to the CTBT that has developed between Moscow and Washington has proven to be no longer possible.”

“We intend to continue to observe the moratorium on nuclear tests introduced more than 30 years ago. However, the United States must understand: conducting full-scale tests, for which the test site infrastructure in Nevada is reportedly prepared, will force us to act in a mirror manner,” the department concluded.

On November 2, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law revoking ratification of the CTBT. Putin raised the issue of the need to revoke ratification at a meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club on October 5. At the same time, he clarified that he cannot say now whether Russia needs nuclear weapons tests or not.

Russia signed an agreement to accept the treaty on September 24, 1996, and ratified it in 2000. The document prohibits nuclear weapons tests and nuclear explosions for peaceful purposes. The moratorium applies in the atmosphere, in space, under water and underground. However, the CTBT did not come into force because it was not ratified by the United States, Egypt, Israel, Iran and China and not signed by India, North Korea and Pakistan.

The withdrawal of ratification of the CTBT will allow Russia to transfer its strategic forces to full combat readiness, stated Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Defense Andrei Kartapolov. The deputy clarified that now “our former partners will think about the fact that you need to take your obligations responsibly if you sign an international agreement.”