Holy See
The Holy See is an example to be followed by other states, as it has adhered to all of the seven key treaties in the legal architecture on disarmament and non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
TPNW Status
| Key weapons of mass destruction treaties | ||
|---|---|---|
| NUCLEAR WEAPONS | ||
| Party to the TPNW | Yes (Ratified 2017) | |
| Party to the NPT | Yes (Acceded 1971) | |
| Ratified the CTBT | Yes (Ratified 2001) | |
| Party to an NWFZ | No | |
| CSA with the IAEA | Yes (In force 1972) | |
| AP with the IAEA | Yes (In force 1998) | |
| BIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL WEAPONS | ||
| Party to the BWC | Yes (Acceded 2002) | |
| Party to the CWC | Yes (Ratified 1999) | |
| TPNW Art. 1(1) prohibitions: Compliance in 2024 | ||
|---|---|---|
| (a) | Develop, produce, manufacture, acquire | Compliant |
| Possess or stockpile | Compliant | |
| Test | Compliant | |
| (b) | Transfer | Compliant |
| (c) | Receive transfer or control | Compliant |
| (d) | Use | Compliant |
| Threaten to use | Compliant | |
| (e) | Assist, encourage or induce | Compliant |
| (f) | Seek or receive assistance | Compliant |
| (g) | Allow stationing, installation, deployment | Compliant |
| TPNW voting and participation | |
|---|---|
| UNGA resolution on TPNW (latest vote) | N/A |
| Participated in 2MSP (2023) | Yes |
| Participated in 1MSP (2022) | Yes |
| Average MSP delegation size (% women) | 6.5 (16.5%) |
| Adoption of TPNW (7 July 2017) | Voted yes |
| Participated in TPNW negotiations (2017) | Yes |
| Negotiation mandate (A/RES/71/258) | N/A |
| Fissile material | |
|---|---|
| Nuclear facilities | No |
| Fissile material production | No |
| HEU stocks | No |
| Plutonium stocks | No |
| SQP with the IAEA | Yes (Modified) |
Latest developments
At a high-level UN event to commemorate the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons on 26 September 2024, the Cardinal Secretary of State of the Holy See, Pietro Parolin, called upon all states to accede to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) and quoted Pope Francis’s statement to the First Meeting of States Parties (1MSP) to the TPNW in 2022: ‘In a system of collective security, there is no place for nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction.’1
In an address to members of the diplomatic corps accredited to the Holy See in January 2024, Pope Francis reaffirmed ‘the immorality of manufacturing and possessing nuclear weapons’.2
At the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) Preparatory Committee session in July 2024, the Holy See encouraged ‘further exploration of how the NPT and the [TPNW] can be mutually reinforcing, including in the areas of nuclear disarmament verification, environmental rehabilitation and assistance to victims’.3
In the First Committee of the UN General Assembly in October 2024, the Holy See said that the TPNW ‘offers a viable path to establish a new security framework based on human dignity and the principle of sovereign equality among States’. ‘By addressing the profound humanitarian and environmental consequences of nuclear weapons, the TPNW provides a comprehensive response to the urgent need for a world free of nuclear weapons,’ it added.4 It also described the TPNW as ‘a beacon of hope and progress’ and urged all states to join the Treaty ‘and renounce the use of nuclear energy for warfare’. Moreover, it expressed hope that the Third Meeting of States Parties to the TPNW in March 2025 would ‘take meaningful steps towards laying a foundation for measures to verify the elimination of nuclear weapons’, and it encouraged ‘the broad participation’ in the meeting of states that are not yet parties to the Treaty.5
Recommendations
-
The Holy See should continue to encourage other states to adhere to the TPNW.
-
The Holy See should ensure that all the TPNW obligations are implemented domestically, through legal, administrative, and other necessary measures.