Mozambique signs the Ban Treaty

Mozambique has become the 83rd state to sign the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, confirming the move this week. Mozambique will now begin a domestic process before confirming ratification of the Treaty in the future.

The Ban Treaty was negotiated by the United Nations in 2017. 122 states voted in favour of the Treaty at the final stage and since then many votes at the United Nations have confirmed the position of the international community in opposing nuclear weapons. The Treaty will ban nuclear weapons on the ground of their humanitarian consequences, in the same way that chemical and biological weapons have previously been banned.

Mozambique was one of the states which took part in the negotiations and voted in favour of the Treaty. The Treaty will enter in to force when 50 states complete the ratification process, so far 44 have done so.

So far more than a quarter of the states who have signed the Treaty are African, with Mozambique becoming the 22nd state to do so. Six of those have completed the ratification process, including Nigeria who joined the Treaty earlier in August. Recently the African Committee on Nuclear Energy called on all African States to ensure the TPNW can come into force quickly.

So far the nuclear-armed states, including the UK, have refused to engage with any processes around the TPNW. Please join us as we thank God not only for the move of Sudan to sign but also that the UK and others would engage with the Treaty, leading to the eventual elimination of nuclear weapons.

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