Switzerland
In March 2024, Switzerland’s Federal Council decided that ‘Switzerland will not join the [Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW)] for the time being’ based on factors including ‘recent security policy developments in Europe and globally’. It reached similar decisions in 2018 and 2019. The Council said that it was ‘convinced that joining the TPNW is not in Switzerland’s interests, given the current international context and the war in Europe, which have highlighted the renewed urgency of security considerations’.1
TPNW Status
| Key weapons of mass destruction treaties | ||
|---|---|---|
| NUCLEAR WEAPONS | ||
| Party to the TPNW | No | |
| Party to the NPT | Yes (Ratified 1977) | |
| Ratified the CTBT | Yes (Ratified 1999, Annex 2 state) | |
| Party to an NWFZ | No | |
| CSA with the IAEA | Yes (In force 1978) | |
| AP with the IAEA | Yes (In force 2005) | |
| BIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL WEAPONS | ||
| Party to the BWC | Yes (Ratified 1976) | |
| Party to the CWC | Yes (Ratified 1995) | |
| 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) | 3 (0%) |
| Adoption of TPNW (7 July 2017) | Voted yes |
| Participated in TPNW negotiations (2017) | Yes |
| Negotiation mandate (A/RES/71/258) | Abstained |
| Fissile material | |
|---|---|
| Nuclear facilities | Yes |
| Fissile material production | No |
| HEU stocks | Cleared |
| Plutonium stocks | Stored abroad |
| SQP with the IAEA | No |
Latest developments
In response to the Federal Council’s decision in March 2024 not to join the TPNW ‘for the time being’, several non-governmental organisations based in Switzerland, including the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, launched a popular initiative aimed at securing Switzerland’s accession to the TPNW.2 Once 100,000 signatures have been obtained, a referendum on the issue should take place.
According to a report by a Swiss newspaper, Le Temps, in 2023, the then-Secretary General of NATO, Jens Stoltenberg, met with Switzerland’s Defence Minister, Viola Amherd, in an effort to dissuade Switzerland from signing and ratifying the TPNW.3
Switzerland voted in favour of the TPNW’s adoption at the negotiating conference in 2017, but it has consistently abstained from voting on annual UN General Assembly resolutions on the Treaty, including in 2024.4 It observed the First and Second Meeting of States Parties (1MSP and 2MSP) to the TPNW in 2022 and 2023, respectively.
Switzerland 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.
In the First Committee of the UN General Assembly in October 2024, Switzerland noted: ‘Progress in nuclear disarmament has historically been slow, yet the direction of travel was clear. We are now taking an opposite trajectory. Numerous steps are being taken in contradiction of [Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (NPT)] obligations and commitments.’ It called for the norms against the use of nuclear weapons to be strengthened and nuclear risks to be reduced.5
Recommendations
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Switzerland 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.