Has the Non-Proliferation Treaty been a success?

It seems obvious to say that the world needs urgent action to prevent the catastrophic humanitarian and environmental consequences that would result from nuclear war. But what is actually stopping it?

The Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) is an international treaty whose objective is -

1. to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology, 

2. to promote cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, and 

3. to further the goal of achieving nuclear disarmament.

Success: The NPT succeeded in preventing the proliferation of nuclear weapons to those industrialized countries that were considered capable of developing nuclear weapons at the time the NPT came into existence. As of Aug 2016, 191 states are parties to the treaty.

Russia, China, USA, France, and the UK possess nuclear weapons, and they are also the five permanent members of the UN Security Council. The “P5” proclaim the reduction of nuclear arsenal expansion but continue to modernize or expand their arsenals.

The NPT was signed in 1968 and came into effect in 1970. It bans signatories other than the P5 from acquiring nuclear weapons – in return they are allowed to pursue peaceful nuclear programmes for power generation, overseen by the UN.

According to Nobouyase Abe, Former UN Under-Secretary-General for Disarmament Affairs, there is a large gulf between P5 rhetoric and actions. The goal should be to ban every country from nuclear development and proliferation unless for peaceful use.

Any form of discrimination undermines NPT’s credibility. India, Pakistan, and Israel are nuclear weapons states that never joined NPT, and North Korea and Iran have never complied with NPT requirements. Thus the NPT has failed to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons.

The NPT has been unable to achieve nuclear disarmament. Article VI of the treaty is not just about conducting negotiations on nuclear disarmament, but concluding and achieving nuclear disarmament in all its forms.

A ray of Hope: the UN-facilitated TPNW (Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons) is the first treaty of its kind against nuclear armament. It entered into force on 22th Jan 2021. This treaty aims to actually prohibit the use of nuclear weapons and aims to eliminate them.

Final Note: NPT is a crucial treaty to save the world from a nuclear war and is here to stay. But the shortcomings need to be addressed to make it effective or it will lose its relevance, says Abe. To avoid nuclear war, no country should be an exception to it.