Solomon Islands has ratified the 1996 Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) last Friday, 20 January 2023 - the 14th Pacific island nation to join.
The ratification was marked with a ceremony at United Nations Headquarters in New York, attended by Ambassador Jane Mugafalu Kabui Waetara, the Permanent Representative of Solomon Islands to the United Nations, and David Nanopoulos, Chief of the Treaty Section of the UN Office of Legal Affairs.
The ratification by Solomon Islands brings the Pacific region another step closer to universal adoption of the CTBT.
Other Pacific island nations who are state parties to the CTBT are: Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Timor-Leste, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu; with Tokelau and Tonga yet to join.
Robert Floyd, Executive Secretary of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) praised the move, saying “I welcome Solomon Islands to the family of CTBT ratifiers. This is a powerful message and a strong political statement from the Solomon Islands whose history underlines the importance of banning nuclear testing for good. I commend the Solomon Islands for its leadership in helping shape a safer world.”