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Sri Lanka
Nuclear-weapon-free state
Has joined the TPNW
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ACCEDED
19 September 2023 |
IN FORCE
18 December 2023 |
Status
Sri Lanka has acceded to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), and has been legally bound by it since 18 December 2023.
Accession
The Sri Lankan minister of foreign affairs, M. U. M. Ali Sabry, deposited Sri Lanka’s instrument of accession with the UN secretary-general at a high-level ceremony in New York on 19 September 2023, describing it as a reaffirmation of Sri Lanka’s “long-standing commitment towards nuclear disarmament in favour of international peace and security”.
The following week, Sri Lanka said that, in the “atmosphere of increased nuclear rhetoric”, it took pride “in offering a sense of forward movement [on nuclear disarmament] through its accession”.
The decision to become a state party to the TPNW was first taken by the cabinet of ministers in 2021 and reaffirmed one week prior to the deposit of the instrument of accession. Sri Lanka was the 69th state to ratify or accede to the treaty.
M. U. M. Ali Sabry, Sri Lanka’s minister of foreign affairs, deposits the instrument of accession in 2023. Photo: UNOLA
National position
Sri Lanka has described itself as “a stalwart supporter of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons”.
Implementation
In accordance with Article 2 of the TPNW, Sri Lanka submitted a declaration to the UN secretary-general on 18 January 2024 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, Sri Lanka has promoted universal adherence to the TPNW, including by 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”.
TPNW negotiations
Sri Lanka 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 its first statement to the negotiating conference, Sri Lanka said that “the solution to counter the challenge of nuclear weapons lies within multilateralism, in the collective will of the [UN] member states”.
In 2016, Sri Lanka 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
Sri Lanka 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-weapon-free state
Has joined the TPNW
[HIGHLIGHTS]
|
|
|
ACCEDED
19 September 2023 |
IN FORCE
18 December 2023 |
Status
Sri Lanka has acceded to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), and has been legally bound by it since 18 December 2023.
Accession
The Sri Lankan minister of foreign affairs, M. U. M. Ali Sabry, deposited Sri Lanka’s instrument of accession with the UN secretary-general at a high-level ceremony in New York on 19 September 2023, describing it as a reaffirmation of Sri Lanka’s “long-standing commitment towards nuclear disarmament in favour of international peace and security”.
The following week, Sri Lanka said that, in the “atmosphere of increased nuclear rhetoric”, it took pride “in offering a sense of forward movement [on nuclear disarmament] through its accession”.
The decision to become a state party to the TPNW was first taken by the cabinet of ministers in 2021 and reaffirmed one week prior to the deposit of the instrument of accession. Sri Lanka was the 69th state to ratify or accede to the treaty.
M. U. M. Ali Sabry, Sri Lanka’s minister of foreign affairs, deposits the instrument of accession in 2023. Photo: UNOLA
National position
Sri Lanka has described itself as “a stalwart supporter of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons”.
Implementation
In accordance with Article 2 of the TPNW, Sri Lanka submitted a declaration to the UN secretary-general on 18 January 2024 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, Sri Lanka has promoted universal adherence to the TPNW, including by 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”.
TPNW negotiations
Sri Lanka 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 its first statement to the negotiating conference, Sri Lanka said that “the solution to counter the challenge of nuclear weapons lies within multilateralism, in the collective will of the [UN] member states”.
In 2016, Sri Lanka 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
Sri Lanka 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
[PARTNERS]
Child Rehabilitation Centre
Forum on Disarmament and Development
Sri Lankan Doctors for Peace and Development
Sri Lanka Nature Group
[LOCALSUPPORT]
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