United Nations Convenes Crucial Nuclear Weapons Meeting

A briefing by the Institute for Security Studies regarding the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Preparatory Committee meeting in New York from 4 to 15 May 2009, focusing on the treaty's pillars and the strategic interests of African states leading up to the 2010 Review Conference.

• The NPT Preparatory Committee (PrepCom) met in New York from 4 to 15 May 2009 to prepare for the 2010 Review Conference (RevCon). The meeting's primary themes included reviewing treaty operations, promoting full implementation, universalisation, and the creation of a standing NPT secretariat and a reporting mechanism for nuclear disarmament.
• The NPT, which opened for signature on 1 July 1968 and entered into force on 5 March 1970, is based on three pillars: Non-proliferation, Disarmament, and Peaceful use of nuclear energy. It distinguishes between Nuclear weapon states (NWS)—the five states that detonated a nuclear device before January 1967 (United States, Russian Federation, United Kingdom, France, and China)—and Non-nuclear weapon states (NNWS).
• African states demonstrate their commitment to nuclear disarmament through the Treaty of Pelindaba (opened for signature in 1996), which establishes an African Nuclear Weapons Free Zone. This treaty prohibits the manufacture, acquisition, testing, or possession of nuclear weapons and seeks 'negative security assurances' from the five NWS, committing them not to use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against any African country.
• The 2009 PrepCom is significant for Africa as Ambassador Boniface Chidyausiku of Zimbabwe was elected as chair. This role ensures he will also chair Main Committee 1 of the 2010 RevCon, which focuses on nuclear disarmament.
• The briefing recommends that African states use the 2009 PrepCom and 2010 RevCon to support the entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (open since September 1996), ensure the Treaty of Pelindaba enters into force before the 2010 RevCon, and encourage NWS to totally eliminate their nuclear arsenals.

APA

du Rand, A., & Dube, G. (n.d.). United Nations Convenes Crucial Nuclear Weapons Meeting. Institute for Security Studies. https://issafrica.org/iss-today/united-nations-convenes-crucial-nuclear-weapons-meeting

Chicago

du Rand, Amelia, and Gugu Dube. United Nations Convenes Crucial Nuclear Weapons Meeting. Institute for Security Studies, n.d. https://issafrica.org/iss-today/united-nations-convenes-crucial-nuclear-weapons-meeting.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=du Rand |first1=Amelia |last2=Dube |first2=Gugu |title=United Nations Convenes Crucial Nuclear Weapons Meeting |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |url=https://issafrica.org/iss-today/united-nations-convenes-crucial-nuclear-weapons-meeting |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{durandndunited, author = {du Rand, Amelia and Dube, Gugu}, title = {{United Nations Convenes Crucial Nuclear Weapons Meeting}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, url = {https://issafrica.org/iss-today/united-nations-convenes-crucial-nuclear-weapons-meeting}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }