Singapore
Singapore has consistently abstained from voting on the annual UN General Assembly resolutions on the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), including in 2024. It also abstained from voting on the adoption of the TPNW at the negotiating conference in 2017. It observed the First and Second Meeting of States Parties (1MSP and 2MSP) to the TPNW in 2022 and 2023, respectively. Singapore 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 (Ratified 1976) | |
| Ratified the CTBT | Yes (Ratified 2001) | |
| Party to an NWFZ | Yes (Ratified 1997, Bangkok) | |
| CSA with the IAEA | Yes (In force 1977) | |
| AP with the IAEA | Yes (In force 2008) | |
| BIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL WEAPONS | ||
| Party to the BWC | Yes (Ratified 1975) | |
| Party to the CWC | Yes (Ratified 1997) | |
| TPNW Art. 1(1) prohibitions: Compatibility in 2024 | ||
|---|---|---|
| (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) | Abstained (2024) |
| Participated in 2MSP (2023) | Yes (observer) |
| Participated in 1MSP (2022) | Yes (observer) |
| Average MSP delegation size (% women) | 2.5 (66.5%) |
| Adoption of TPNW (7 July 2017) | Abstained |
| 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 (Modified) |
Latest developments
At the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) Preparatory Committee session in July 2024, Singapore said that ‘our collective long-term aspiration remains complete nuclear disarmament’.1 ‘The continued lack of progress on nuclear disarmament further deepens distrust,’ it warned. ‘We are particularly alarmed by recent rhetoric threatening the use of nuclear weapons.’2
In the First Committee of the UN General Assembly in October 2024, Singapore said that ‘we must reaffirm and strengthen the international nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation regime, which is even more salient given the state of the world today’.3 ‘We must no longer wait for an elusive “right time” to restart productive conversations about disarmament,’ it stressed.4
In 2023, Singapore noted concerns that it had raised during the negotiation of the TPNW in 2017 and reiterated ‘that the TPNW should not in any way affect the rights and obligations of States parties under other treaties and agreements’, including the NPT. ‘We urge the international community to find a realistic and complementary role for the TPNW within the existing global disarmament architecture, of which the NPT remains the cornerstone.’5
Recommendations
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Singapore should urgently adhere to the TPNW. Until it is in a position to do so, it should welcome the TPNW as a valuable component in the global disarmament and non-proliferation architecture, work with the Treaty's states parties on practical steps towards disarmament, and attend the meetings of states parties as an observer.