Portugal ratifies Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty

Portugal has deposited its instrument of ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) with the Secretary-General of the United Nations. To enter into force, the CTBT has to be ratified by 44 States named under Article XIV that formally participated in the work of the 1996 Conference on Disarmament and that possess nuclear power or research reactors. Portugal is contributing one radionuclide station, one infrasound station and one hydroacoustic station to the international network of monitoring facilities that the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) is establishing or upgrading to verify compliance with the Treaty. Surveys to determine the suitability of the sites designated in the Treaty for the hydroacoustic and the radionuclide stations and the equipment they need to meet the stringent criteria of the verification regime are being conducted. Negotiations for the infrasound station are under way. All the stations are located in the Azores.

Under the CTBT, an international monitoring system (IMS) of 321 stations, using four complementary technologies, is being established to record data necessary to verify compliance with the Treaty. The stations will be capable of registering vibrations from a possible nuclear explosion underground, in the seas and in the air, as well as detecting radioactive debris released into the atmosphere. The monitoring stations will transmit, via satellite, the data to the International Data Centre (IDC) within CTBTO PrepCom in Vienna, where the data will be used to detect, locate and characterize events. These data and other IDC products will be made available to the signatory States for final analysis.

The 59 States that have ratified the Treaty are: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, El Salvador, Estonia, Fiji, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Grenada, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Lesotho, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mali, Mexico, Micronesia (Federated States of), Monaco, Mongolia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Panama, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Romania, Russian Federation, Senegal, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tajikistan, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and Uzbekistan. To date, 155 States have signed the Treaty.

The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty bans any nuclear weapon test explosion or any other nuclear explosion anywhere in the world. Drafted at the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva and adopted by the General Assembly on 10 September 1996, the Treaty was opened for signature on 24 September 1996 at the United Nations in New York.

For further information on the CTBTO, please see www.ctbto.org or contact: 
Annika Thunborg
Chief, Public Information   
T    +43 1 26030-6375  
E    press@ctbto.org
M    +43 699 1459 6375