Kenya
Kenya voted in favour of adopting the TPNW at the UN Diplomatic Conference in 2017 and has consistently voted in favour of the annual UN General Assembly resolutions on the Treaty, including in 2023. Kenya maintains policies and practices that are compatible with all of the prohibitions in Article 1 of the TPNW, and can therefore sign and ratify or accede to the Treaty without the need for a change in conduct.
TPNW Status
| TPNW Article 1(1) prohibitions: Compatibility in 2023 | ||
|---|---|---|
| (a) | Develop, produce, manufacture, acquire | Compatible |
| Test | Compatible | |
| Possess or stockpile | Compatible | |
| (b) | Transfer | Compatible |
| (c) | Receive transfer or control | Compatible |
| (d) | Use | Compatible |
| Threaten to use | Compatible | |
| (e) | Assist, encourage or induce | Compatible |
| (f) | Seek or receive assistance | Compatible |
| (g) | Allow stationing, installation, deployment | Compatible |
| TPNW voting and participation | |
|---|---|
| UNGA resolution on TPNW (latest vote) | Voted yes (2023) |
| Participated in 2MSP (2023) | No |
| 1MSP delegation size (% women) | N/A |
| Adoption of TPNW (7 July 2017) | Voted yes |
| Participated in TPNW negotiations (2017) | Yes |
| Negotiation mandate (A/RES/71/258) | Voted yes |
| Other weapons of mass destruction (WMD) treaties | |
|---|---|
| Party to an NWFZ | Yes (Ratified 2001, Pelindaba) |
| Party to the NPT | Yes (Ratified 1970) |
| Ratified the CTBT | Yes (Ratified 2000) |
| Party to the BWC | Yes (Acceded 1976) |
| Party to the CWC | Yes (Ratified 1997) |
| IAEA safeguards and fissile material | |
|---|---|
| Safeguards agreement | Yes (18 Sep 2009) |
| TPNW Art 3(2) deadline | N/A |
| Small Quantities Protocol | Yes (Modified) |
| Additional Protocol | Yes |
| Enrichment facilities/reprocessing plants | No |
| HEU stocks | No |
| Plutonium stocks | No |
Latest developments
In a statement marking the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons on 26 September 2023, Kenya lamented the lack of progress in reducing nuclear arsenals and urged States that rely on nuclear weapons ‘to abandon the false promise of nuclear deterrence’. ‘We must unite to prevent global destruction and the annihilation of humanity,’ it said. ‘We need collective action to eliminate the spectre of nuclear war.’ Kenya also expressed its support for the TPNW and urged ‘multilateral dialogue and renewed commitment to disarmament’. It said that efforts to strengthen the NPT, the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty and the TPNW are essential.1
In the First Committee of the UN General Assembly in October 2023, Kenya reiterated ‘its enduring commitment’ to nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation. ‘Disarmament commitments cannot be optional,’ it said. ‘They demand our urgent collective attention and unwavering dedication.’2
Recommendations
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Kenya should urgently adhere to the TPNW.