Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea voted in favour of the adoption of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) at the negotiating conference in 2017 and has consistently voted in favour of the annual UN General Assembly resolutions on the Treaty, including in 2025. It 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
| Key weapons of mass destruction treaties | ||
|---|---|---|
| NUCLEAR WEAPONS | ||
| Party to the TPNW | No | |
| Party to the NPT | Yes (Acceded 1982) | |
| Ratified the CTBT | Yes (Ratified 2024) | |
| Party to an NWFZ | Yes (Ratified 1985, Rarotonga) | |
| CSA with the IAEA | Yes (In force 1983) | |
| AP with the IAEA | No | |
| BIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL WEAPONS | ||
| Party to the BWC | Yes (Acceded 1980) | |
| Party to the CWC | Yes (Ratified 1996) | |
| TPNW Art. 1(1) prohibitions: Compatibility in 2025 | ||
|---|---|---|
| (a) | Develop, produce, manufacture, acquire | Compatible |
| Possess or stockpile | Compatible | |
| Test | 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 (2025) |
| Participated in 3MSP (2025) | No |
| Participated in 2MSP (2023) | No |
| Participated in 1MSP (2022) | No |
| Average MSP 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 |
| Fissile material | |
|---|---|
| Nuclear facilities | No |
| Fissile material production | No |
| HEU stocks | No |
| Plutonium stocks | No |
| SQP with the IAEA | Yes (Revised) |
Latest developments
At the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) Preparatory Committee meeting in April 2025, the States Parties to the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone Treaty, including Papua New Guinea, reaffirmed their commitment to a nuclear-weapon-free world. ‘As a region devastatingly affected by nuclear testing, the slow pace of nuclear disarmament is a significant concern,’ they said.1
At a high-level event on 26 September 2025 marking the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons, the Pacific Islands Forum, of which Papua New Guinea is a member State, noted the ‘significant contribution’ of the 1985 South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone Treaty to nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament and to ‘inspiring other nuclear-weapon-free zones around the world’.2
In an address to the UN General Assembly in September 2024, the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, James Marape, warned that we are living at a time when a ‘nuclear bomb has the potential to destroy our planet’ at the press of a button. ‘[V]iolence begets violence,’ he said. ‘Peace must be achieved by peaceful means …’3
In the First Committee of the UN General Assembly in October 2024, Papua New Guinea said that it ‘is steadfastly committed to disarmament’. It described itself as a ‘strong supporter and advocate for a nuclear-weapons-free Pacific region’. ‘We will continue to stand in solidarity with our Pacific neighbours in raising our collective voice against the testing or use of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction in our region and beyond’.4
On 13 March 2024, Papua New Guinea ratified the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT).5
Recommendations
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Papua New Guinea should urgently adhere to the TPNW.
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Papua New Guinea should conclude and bring into force an Additional Protocol (AP) with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).