§ Mr. GummerTo ask the Prime Minister what common factor makes it permissible for the US, the UK, France, Israel, India, Pakistan and Russia to hold weapons of mass destruction. [148676]
§ The Prime MinisterThe UK is fully committed to the Treaties promoting the non-proliferation of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons, and supports their universalisation.
The US, UK, France and Russia, together with China, are recognised by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) as nuclear-weapon States, as defined in Article 9(3) of the Treaty. Under the terms of the treaty Israel, India and Pakistan cannot be recognised as nuclear weapons states. The UK regularly calls on these states to accede to the treaty as non-nuclear weapon states.
The US, the UK, France, India, Pakistan and Russia are all States Parties to the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC). This Convention bans States Parties from producing, developing or stockpiling biological and toxin weapons. Israel has not acceded to the Convention, but is bound by the Geneva Protocol which prohibits the use of chemical and biological weapons. The UK regularly calls on Israel to accede to the convention.
The US, UK, France, India, Pakistan and Russia are all States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), which bans the development, production, stockpiling and use of chemical weapons and requires the destruction of existing stockpiles. US, India and Russia have begun destruction of their chemical weapon stocks as required by the convention subject to close scrutiny by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). Israel has been a signatory of the CWC since 1993, but has yet to ratify it. The UK regularly calls on Israel to ratify the convention and supports calls by the EU and the OPCW to encourage it to do so.