Democratic Republic of the Congo

Nuclear-weapon-free state

Has joined the TPNW

SIGNED

20 September 2017

RATIFIED

22 September 2022

IN FORCE

21 December 2022

Status

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has signed and ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), and has been legally bound by it since 21 December 2022.

Signature and ratification

Leonard She Okitundu, the then-minister of foreign affairs of the DRC, signed the TPNW at a high-level ceremony in New York when it opened for signature on 20 September 2017.

The DRC said that, by signing the TPNW, it had “reaffirmed its unwavering commitment in favour of international peace and security”.

The minister of human rights, Albert-Fabrice Puela, deposited the country’s instrument of ratification with the UN secretary-general at a high-level ceremony on 22 September 2022.

The council of ministers approved ratification of the TPNW on 6 May 2022 and the president, Felix Tshisekedi, signed an ordinance on 15 August 2022 authorising the same.

The DRC was the equal 67th state to ratify or accede to the TPNW.

Leonard She Okitundu, the then-minister of foreign affairs of the DRC, signs the TPNW in 2017. Photo: ICAN

Campaigners in the DRC meet with members of parliament in 2021 to encourage swift action to ratify the TPNW. Photo: Parliament of DRC

Albert-Fabrice Puela, the minister of human rights of the DRC, deposits the instrument of ratification in 2022. Photo: UNOLA

National position

In 2022, the DRC welcomed the “historic adoption” of the TPNW, its entry into force, and the success of its first meeting of states parties. It said that the treaty “has greatly contributed to the search for the achievement of our common objective, which is a world without nuclear weapons”.

The DRC considers that the TPNW and the 1968 Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) “are two complementary instruments” and that the TPNW “is based on existing standards and reinforces the obligations of article VI of the NPT”.

Implementation

In accordance with Article 2 of the TPNW, the DRC submitted a declaration to the UN secretary-general on 25 April 2023 confirming that it does not own, possess, or control nuclear weapons, has never done so, and does not host any other state’s nuclear weapons on its territory.

Per Article 12, the DRC has promoted universal adherence to the TPNW, including by co-sponsoring and consistently voting in favour of an annual UN General Assembly resolution since 2018 that calls upon all states to sign, ratify, or accede to the treaty “at the earliest possible date”.

In 2023, the DRC urged all states “that have not yet done so to seize the opportunity to sign and ratify the [TPNW] with a view to achieving the goal of a world free of nuclear weapons’. It added that, “if we are sincere in our quest for disarmament, we have the collective responsibility to ensure [the TPNW’s] universalisation”.

The DRC addresses a regional seminar on the universalisation of the TPNW in Pretoria, South Africa, in 2023. Photo: ICAN

Meetings of states parties

The DRC observed the first meeting of states parties to the TPNW in 2022. “Deterrence is a false guarantee of security that keeps the world in the balance of terror,” it said. “Nuclear disarmament is an emergency and is becoming a necessity for our security.”

Having become a TPNW state party on 21 December 2022, the DRC participated in the second meeting of states parties in 2023, where it described the treaty as “an effective lever to alert the international community to the ever-present risk of a nuclear detonation”.

TPNW negotiations

The DRC participated in the negotiation of the TPNW at the United Nations in New York in 2017 and was among 122 states that voted in favour of its adoption.

In 2016, the DRC co-sponsored the UN General Assembly resolution that established the formal mandate for states to commence negotiations on “a legally binding instrument to prohibit nuclear weapons, leading towards their total elimination”.

Before the negotiations

The DRC was among 127 states that endorsed a “humanitarian pledge” in 2015–16 to cooperate “in efforts to stigmatise, prohibit, and eliminate nuclear weapons”. The pledge was instrumental in building momentum and support for convening the TPNW negotiations.

Further information

Nuclear Weapons Ban Monitor

Nuclear-weapon-free state

Has joined the TPNW

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