BICOM

Israel has reiterated its support for the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty during a visit from the United Nations official responsible for the agreement.

Following a meeting with Dr Lassina Zerbo, the executive secretary of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organisation (CNTBTO), Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a statement which said: “The State of Israel supports the treaty and its goals and has, therefore, signed the treaty.”

Zerbo is in Israel at the invitation of Israel’s Atomic Energy Commission Director Zeev Senir, and told AP after the meeting that Netanyahu gave the impression that the matter of ratification was a matter of “when, rather than if”. Zerbo added that although no timeframe was mentioned, this is “normal in diplomacy” and that Netanyahu attaches real importance to a nuclear test-free zone in the Middle East. Netanyahu’s statement called Zerbo’s visit “an expression of the longstanding successful cooperation between Israel and the organisation [CNTBTO]”.

The treaty was signed twenty years ago by 183 of 196 member-states, of which 164 have ratified it. However, the treaty cannot come into effect, as it requires ratification by eight countries believed to have nuclear reactors, including Israel and the United States. On this issue, Netanyahu said: “Ratification depends on the regional context and the appropriate timing.”

Israel officially maintains a policy of nuclear ambiguity, refusing to either confirm or deny its atomic capability. In October 2013, Israeli and Arab officials met in Switzerland for short-lived discussions on the conditions which would be needed for a regional conference on nuclear weapons. Israel proposed that the conference necessitate direct contact between the countries and that talks include not only to nuclear weapons, but other security issues including terror, missiles and weapons smuggling.