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Lithuania
Nuclear-weapon endorser
Has not yet joined the TPNW
Status
Lithuania has not yet signed or ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).
National position
Lithuania has consistently voted against an annual UN General Assembly resolution since 2018 that welcomes the adoption of the TPNW and calls upon all states to sign, ratify, or accede to it “at the earliest possible date”.
Lithuania supports the retention and potential use of nuclear weapons on its behalf, as indicated by its endorsement of various alliance statements of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), of which it is a member.
Responding to a recommendation in 2022 to ratify the TPNW as part of the UN Human Rights Council’s universal periodic review, Lithuania said that its “position of non-acceptance of the [TPNW] has not changed and will remain unchanged for as long as NATO remains a nuclear alliance”.
“The TPNW does not reflect the increasingly complex nature of the international security context,” it added. “Lithuania, like all NATO allies, intends to continue to uphold the principles of NATO as a nuclear alliance for defence and deterrence …”
TPNW negotiations
Lithuania did not participate in the negotiation of the TPNW at the United Nations in New York in 2017 and thus did not vote on its adoption. On the opening day of the negotiating conference, it joined the United States and several other states in protesting the treaty-making process.
In 2016, Lithuania voted against 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”.
In a document sent to NATO members ahead of the vote, the United States “strongly encourage[d]” members, including Lithuania, to vote against the resolution, “not to merely abstain”. In addition, it said that, if the treaty negotiations do commence, allies and partners should “refrain from joining them”.
Further information
Nuclear-weapon endorser
Has not yet joined the TPNW
[HIGHLIGHTS]
Status
Lithuania has not yet signed or ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).
National position
Lithuania has consistently voted against an annual UN General Assembly resolution since 2018 that welcomes the adoption of the TPNW and calls upon all states to sign, ratify, or accede to it “at the earliest possible date”.
Lithuania supports the retention and potential use of nuclear weapons on its behalf, as indicated by its endorsement of various alliance statements of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), of which it is a member.
Responding to a recommendation in 2022 to ratify the TPNW as part of the UN Human Rights Council’s universal periodic review, Lithuania said that its “position of non-acceptance of the [TPNW] has not changed and will remain unchanged for as long as NATO remains a nuclear alliance”.
“The TPNW does not reflect the increasingly complex nature of the international security context,” it added. “Lithuania, like all NATO allies, intends to continue to uphold the principles of NATO as a nuclear alliance for defence and deterrence …”
TPNW negotiations
Lithuania did not participate in the negotiation of the TPNW at the United Nations in New York in 2017 and thus did not vote on its adoption. On the opening day of the negotiating conference, it joined the United States and several other states in protesting the treaty-making process.
In 2016, Lithuania voted against 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”.
In a document sent to NATO members ahead of the vote, the United States “strongly encourage[d]” members, including Lithuania, to vote against the resolution, “not to merely abstain”. In addition, it said that, if the treaty negotiations do commence, allies and partners should “refrain from joining them”.
Further information
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