Vanuatu
In the First Committee of the UN General Assembly in October 2023, Vanuatu said that it is committed to achieving a world free of nuclear weapons. ‘This is why Vanuatu joined the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW),’ it added. ‘We urge all UN member States to join the TPNW. Joining the Treaty will send a clear signal to the world that we want to live in a world free of nuclear weapons.’[1]
TPNW Status
| TPNW Article 1(1) prohibitions: Compliance in 2023 | ||
|---|---|---|
| (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 2MSP (2023) | Yes |
| 2MSP delegation size (% women) | 3 (33%) |
| Adoption of TPNW (7 July 2017) | Voted yes |
| Participated in TPNW negotiations (2017) | Yes |
| Negotiation mandate (A/RES/71/258) | Voted yes |
| Other weapons of mass destruction (WMD) treaties | |
|---|---|
| Party to an NWFZ | Yes (Ratified 1995, Rarotonga) |
| Party to the NPT | Yes (Acceded 1995) |
| Ratified the CTBT | Yes (Ratified 2005) |
| Party to the BWC | Yes (Acceded 2016) |
| Party to the CWC | Yes (Acceded 2005) |
| IAEA safeguards and fissile material | |
|---|---|
| Safeguards agreement | Yes (21 May 2013) |
| TPNW Art 3(2) deadline | N/A |
| Small Quantities Protocol | Yes (Modified) |
| Additional Protocol | Yes |
| Enrichment facilities/reprocessing plants | No |
| HEU stocks | No |
| Plutonium stocks | No |
Latest developments
Vanuatu participated in the Second Meeting of States Parties to the TPNW (2MSP) in November and December 2023 but did not make a statement. It was one of the co-sponsors for the 2023 UN General Assembly resolution on the TPNW, which 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’.2 Vanuatu also promoted adherence to the TPNW as part of the UN Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review in 2023.
Recommendations
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Vanuatu should continue to encourage other states to adhere to the TPNW.
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Vanuatu should ensure that all the TPNW obligations are implemented domestically, through legal, administrative, and other necessary measures.