On the 40th anniversary of the entry into force of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, Federal Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle issued today (6 March) in Cordoba the following statement:

“Also forty years after its entry into force the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty remains indispensable for the maintenance and consolidation of peace, security and stability.

The Treaty incorporates a mutual pledge to refrain from proliferating nuclear weapons and a commitment to disarm on the part of the nuclear-weapon states.

The German Government is committed to both goals. With our E3+3 partners we are seeking to prevent a nuclear-armed Iran. But we are also supporting the talks under way between the United States and Russia on a reduction of their strategic weapons arsenals.

If successful, these talks will have a positive impact on the forthcoming Review Conference in New York of the Parties to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Together with our partners Germany will be working in New York to strengthen the Treaty regime.”

The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons was signed on 1 July 1968 and entered into force on 5 March 1970. By defining the key parameters for achieving further progress on disarmament, it constitutes the basis of the global non-proliferation system. Currently 190 countries are parties to the Treaty; Germany became a party on 2 May 1975. A comprehensive Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty is to take place in New York in May.