HOLY SEE APPEAL TO STATES TO RATIFY NUCLEAR TEST BAN TREATY

VATICAN CITY, NOV 11, 2001 (VIS) - Archbishop Renato R. Martino, head of the Holy See delegation to the United Nations, spoke on November 11 at the Conference on Facilitating the Entry into Force of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT).

The archbishop reminded the assembly that, "Having signed the CTBT on September 24, 1996, the Holy See deposited the Instrument of Ratification on July 18, 2001. Reiterating the firm conviction that nuclear weapons are incompatible with the peace we seek for the Twenty-first Century, the Holy See added: 'The Holy See is convinced that, in the sphere of nuclear weapons, the banning of tests and the further development of these weapons, disarmament and non-proliferation are closely linked and must be achieved as quickly as possible under effective international controls'."

"Today," he underscored, "the Holy See adds its voice to those who appeal to the states whose ratification is necessary for the entry into force of the treaty. ... The continued success of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) requires the entry into force of the CTBT. If the world is to stop the proliferation of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction, then the flow of development of such weapons must be extinguished at the source."

Archbishop Martino concluded: "It is the solemn duty of all states to work actively for peace. In the wake of the damnable acts that claimed so many innocent lives just two months ago today here in New York, in Washington, D.C. and in the farmland of Pennsylvania, and the continuing violence that plagues the peace and harmony of countless numbers of people in so many places throughout the world, let us use the occasion of this Conference to renew our common desire for an enduring peace, justice and security for all peoples."

DELSS;NUCLEAR TEST BAN TREATY;...;UN; MARTINO;VIS;20011112;Word: 310;