Tuvalu
Tuvalu was among the first 50 states that ratified or acceded to the TPNW, bringing the Treaty as a whole into force on 22 January 2021. On 31 March 2022, Tuvalu ratified the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), and on 1 December 2022 it upgraded its Original Small Quantities Protocol (SQP) with the IAEA to a Modified SQP.
TPNW Status
| TPNW Article 1(1) prohibitions: Compliance in 2022 | ||
|---|---|---|
| (a) | Develop, produce, manufacture, acquire | Compliant |
| Test | Compliant | |
| Possess or stockpile | 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 (2023) |
| Participated in 1MSP (2022) | No |
| 1MSP delegation size (% women) | N/A |
| Adoption of TPNW (7 July 2017) | N/A |
| Participated in TPNW negotiations (2017) | No |
| Negotiation mandate (A/RES/71/258) | Did not vote |
| Other weapons of mass destruction (WMD) treaties | |
|---|---|
| Party to an NWFZ | Yes (Ratified 1985, Rarotonga) |
| Party to the NPT | Yes (Acceded 1979) |
| Ratified the CTBT | Yes (Ratified 2022) |
| Party to the BWC | No |
| Party to the CWC | Yes (Acceded 2004) |
| IAEA safeguards and fissile material | |
|---|---|
| Safeguards agreement | Yes |
| TPNW Art 3(2) deadline | N/A |
| Small Quantities Protocol | Yes (Modified) |
| Additional Protocol | No |
| Enrichment facilities/reprocessing plants | No |
| HEU stocks | No |
| Plutonium stocks | No |
Latest developments
At the Tenth Review Conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) in August 2022, Tuvalu, together with 64 other TPNW supporters, urged ‘all states committed to attain and maintain a world without nuclear weapons to join the TPNW without delay’.1
The Pacific Small Island Developing States, of which Tuvalu is a member, delivered a joint statement at the NPT Review Conference which said: “We are gravely concerned about the serious shortfalls in the implementation of Article VI of the NPT although the nuclear weapon states have spent billions of dollars on modernizing and maintaining their nuclear arsenals. This amount could have been better spent on helping victims of past use and testing of nuclear weapons, fighting the global pandemic of Covid-19 and on the sustainable development goals.” The joint statement also said that ‘Despite the unfortunate recent behavior, following the invasion of Ukraine, and hinting at their possible use, there is hope’, and noted the entry into force of the TPNW and the convening of the Treaty's First Meeting of States Parties (1MSP).2
Recommendations
- Tuvalu should continue to encourage other states to adhere to the TPNW.
- Tuvalu should ensure that all the TPNW obligations are implemented domestically, through legal, administrative, and other necessary measures.
- Tuvalu should conclude and bring into force an Additional Protocol with the IAEA. @Tuvalu should adhere to the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC).