(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan made a Statement on the entry into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, the MFA's official website reads, Trend reports citing Kazinform .
Kazakhstan welcomes the entry into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).
The Treaty, adopted on 7 July 2017, with the support of 122 UN Member States, is an important step towards the complete elimination of nuclear weapons.
Kazakhstan took an active part in the negotiation process on the TPNW, as a country that has passed an ambitious path of becoming a leader in nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation after being a one-time holder of the world's fourth nuclear arsenal.
Consistent actions in support of the TPNW are based on the constant priorities of Kazakhstan's foreign policy and significant historical initiatives of the First President - Elbasy Nursultan Nazarbayev, aimed at building a world without nuclear weapons.
It is symbolic that the first multilateral legally binding document in the history of nuclear disarmament, which eliminates a serious gap in international law (Among three types of WMD - nuclear, chemical and biological - only nuclear weapons were not legally banned) comes into force in the year of 30th Anniversary of the closure of the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site. These events also coincide with the next Award Ceremony of the 'Nazarbayev Prize for a Nuclear Weapon Free World and Global Security this year within the framework of Commemoration of August 29 - the International Day against Nuclear Tests.
The historic decision of Nursultan Nazarbayev to close the nuclear test site gave impetus to establish a ban on nuclear testing around the world and paved the way for the adoption of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), as well as the establishment of a nuclear-weapon-free zone in Central Asia.
Being a consistent supporter of the idea of total and comprehensive nuclear disarmament, Kazakhstan signed the TPNW on 2 March 2018, becoming the 57th Signatory State, and on August 29, 2019, Kazakhstan became the 26th State that submitted its ratification document to the UN Secretariat. On July 3, 2019, the President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan 'On Ratification of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. President Tokayev speaking for the first time as Head of State at the 74th session of the UN General Assembly said that achieving a nuclear-weapon-free-world remains the top priority for our country.
'This aspiration has become an integral part of the national identity of the Kazakh people, giving us the moral right to be at the forefront of the global movement to eliminate nuclear weapons, - said the President.
At the 75th session of the UN General Assembly in September 2020, the President of Kazakhstan emphasized that amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament crisis remains among the serious challenges, and 'the continued erosion of the non-proliferation regime puts us in an extremely vulnerable and dangerous situation.
In this regard, the initiative of the First President - Elbasy Nursultan Nazarbayev to create a Global Alliance of Leaders for Nuclear Security and Nuclear-Weapon-Free World remains very relevant.
Stressing the importance of universalizing the TPNW, Kazakhstan calls on other countries to join the Treaty in order to get rid our planet of nuclear weapons by 2045 - the centenary of the UN.
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