Timor-Leste
Timor-Leste is an example to be followed by other states, as it has now 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 2022) | |
| Party to the NPT | Yes (Acceded 2003) | |
| Ratified the CTBT | Yes (Ratified 2022) | |
| Party to an NWFZ | No | |
| CSA with the IAEA | Yes (In force 2024) | |
| AP with the IAEA | Yes (In force 2024) | |
| BIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL WEAPONS | ||
| Party to the BWC | Yes (Acceded 2003) | |
| Party to the CWC | Yes (Acceded 2003) | |
| 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) | Voted yes (2024) |
| Participated in 2MSP (2023) | Yes |
| Participated in 1MSP (2022) | Yes (observer) |
| Average MSP delegation size (% women) | 5.5 (16.5%) |
| 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 (Modified) |
Latest developments
During the high-level segment of the UN General Assembly in September 2024, the Prime Minister of Timor-Leste, Xanana Gusmão, noted that his country had ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) and called ‘on everyone to contribute to ensuring our common future’, including by ratifying this Treaty.1
At the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) Preparatory Committee session in July 2024, Timor-Leste said that the TPNW ‘aims to close the existing legal gap on nuclear disarmament’, complementing the NPT ‘in achieving humanity’s common goal of eliminating nuclear weapons’. It encouraged all other NPT states parties, particularly the nuclear-weapon states, ‘to consider ratifying the TPNW, to further strengthen the international legal framework for the total elimination of nuclear weapons’.2
In accordance with Article 3 of the TPNW, Timor-Leste brought into force a Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement (CSA) with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on 25 September 2024. At the same time, it also brought into force an Additional Protocol (AP).3
At a high-level UN event to commemorate the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons on 26 September 2024, Timor-Leste said that it would ‘persist in urging all States to contribute constructively towards a peaceful denuclearisation of the world’ and encouraged those ‘that have not yet done so to join the TPNW and recognise its entry into force as a significant achievement towards eliminating nuclear weapons’. It added that the TPNW ‘represents an essential international norm for peace, collective security and the preservation of human life’.4
In the First Committee of the UN General Assembly in October 2024, Timor-Leste said that its ‘commitment to a culture of peace and disarmament’ is reflected in its constitution and its ratification of the NPT, the TPNW and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT).5
Timor-Leste was one of the co-sponsors for the 2024 UN General Assembly resolution on the TPNW, which welcomed the Treaty’s entry into force and called upon ‘all States that have not yet done so to sign, ratify, accept, approve or accede to the Treaty at the earliest possible date’.6 Timor-Leste also promoted adherence to the TPNW as part of the UN Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review in 2024.
Recommendations
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Timor-Leste should continue to encourage other states to adhere to the TPNW.
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Timor-Leste should ensure that all the TPNW obligations are implemented domestically, through legal, administrative, and other necessary measures.