Luxembourg

Nuclear-weapon endorser

Has not yet joined the TPNW

Status

Luxembourg has not yet signed or ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).

 

National position

Luxembourg 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”.

Luxembourg 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.

In 2023, the then-minister of foreign affairs of Luxembourg, Jean Asselborn, argued that “the TPNW has become a political instrument, which is not conducive to achieving the overarching goal of a world free of nuclear weapons”.

He criticised TPNW states parties for aiming to isolate and stigmatise nuclear-armed states, and asserted that the first meeting of states parties to the TPNW in 2022 “turned out to be a quasi-anti-western event”.

 

TPNW negotiations

Luxembourg 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.

When the TPNW opened for signature, Luxembourg argued that the treaty was “not the right path” to achieving the goal of a nuclear-weapon-free world.

In 2016, Luxembourg 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 Luxembourg, 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 Weapons Ban Monitor

Nuclear-weapon endorser

Has not yet joined the TPNW

[HIGHLIGHTS]

Status

Luxembourg has not yet signed or ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).

 

National position

Luxembourg 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”.

Luxembourg 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.

In 2023, the then-minister of foreign affairs of Luxembourg, Jean Asselborn, argued that “the TPNW has become a political instrument, which is not conducive to achieving the overarching goal of a world free of nuclear weapons”.

He criticised TPNW states parties for aiming to isolate and stigmatise nuclear-armed states, and asserted that the first meeting of states parties to the TPNW in 2022 “turned out to be a quasi-anti-western event”.

 

TPNW negotiations

Luxembourg 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.

When the TPNW opened for signature, Luxembourg argued that the treaty was “not the right path” to achieving the goal of a nuclear-weapon-free world.

In 2016, Luxembourg 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 Luxembourg, 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 Weapons Ban Monitor

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