§ Angus RobertsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions(a) he and (b) members of his Department have had since April with representatives of (i) the US Administration, (ii) the governments of the EU member states, (iii) the governments of prospective EU 383W candidates, (iv) the Russian Government and (v) the Government of China about military nuclear testing; and if he will make a statement. [131530]
§ Mr. MacShaneMy noble Friend, the Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean and officials spoke to representatives of governments from all the regional groupings at the Conference on the entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) in September 2003, which was attended by 102 State Parties. In her speech to the Conference, Baroness Symons reiterated the UK's continued strong support for the CTBT. The full text of the speech is available on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website: www. fco.gov.uk-speeches
Prior to the Conference, we also participated in an extensive EU lobbying effort, including with both the United States and China, to urge their ratification of the Treaty.
The UK has not carried out a nuclear explosion since November 1991. We signed the CTBT in 1996 and ratified it in 1998. We continue to urge all states that have not yet done so to sign and ratify the Treaty as soon as possible.