Fiji August 9, 1995--In memory of the 50th anniversary of the United States bombing of the Japanese city of Nagasaki, Greenpeace is calling on the countries of the United Nations to condemn and prohibit all further nuclear tests and the production of plutonium -- the deadly element which fuelled the Nagasaki bomb.
A 6.2 kilogram plutonium bomb destroyed the city of Nagasaki 50 years ago on August 9 1945, killing 70,000 people.
"Fifty years after Nagasaki was destroyed by a plutonium bomb, it is time to halt nuclear testing and stop the spread of plutonium," said Stephanie Mills from the Greenpeace vessel Rainbow Warrior in Fiji. "'No more Nagasaki's' means taking the required steps to stop testing and constructing nuclear weapons".
Since 1945 tremendous quantities of weapons-usable plutonium have been produced by the nuclear industries -- both military and civilian (nuclear power). Over 250 tonnes of plutonium is currently in weapons arsenals, while some 160 tonnes have been separated for unjustified commercial purposes. Fifty years after the first plutonium bomb, we've now got enough to produce 20,000 such bombs. Indeed, by 2000, 37,585 Nagasaki bombs worth of plutonium will be in the commercial pipeline unless plutonium separation (reprocessing) is banned.
In May of this year, the five officially recognised nuclear weapons states -- France, China, the UK, the US and Russia -- pledged to "exercise the utmost restraint" in the field of nuclear testing at the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review and Extension Conference.
A promise to negotiate a Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) by 1996 was extracted by the non-nuclear weapons states from the nuclear weapons states at the NPT Conference. However, China's continuing programme of nuclear testing and France's announcement that it will begin a series of tests in September of this year have broken this promise. This has led some 150 of the 184 member states of the United Nations General Assembly to condemn any further nuclear testing [1].
"The best memorial for the people of Nagasaki would be a renewed commitment by all countries to halt all nuclear tests and agree a Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty this year," said Mills. "Nuclear weapons don't increase global stability; they lead to global insecurity. These weapons must be outlawed and eliminated from the arsenals of all countries".
The five officially recognised nuclear weapons nations, Russia, the US, China, France and Britain today have 17,474 nuclear weapons.
Vigils, peace camps and demonstrations will take place around the world to mark the 50th anniversary of the bombing of Nagasaki and to protest France's decision to resume nuclear testing.
Further information:
Karen Richardson or Antony Froggatt, Greenpeace International +44 171 354 5100; Cindy Baxter, Greenpeace Communications, +44-171 833 0600 Stephanie Mills, aboard the SV Rainbow Warrior, +679 300 487 or +872 1300312.
NOTES TO EDITOR
[1] The following list of countries identifies states which have expressed opposition to the resumption of the testing of nuclear weapons after the May 1995 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Conference on AT LEAST one occasion. They have done so either individually or collectively, by virtue of their membership of intergovernmental organisations or political groupings at international fora.
Country Against testing
Afghanistan Yes NAM Albania No
Algeria Yes NAM Andorra No
Angola Yes NAM Antiga and Barbados Yes OPA
Argentina Yes G21 Armenia Yes Gov.
Australian Yes SPF Austria Yes Gov.
Azerbaijan No Bahamas Yes NAM
Bahrain Yes NAM Banaladesh Yes NAM
Barbados Yes NAM Belarus No
Belgium Yes Gov. Belize Yes NAM
Benin Yes NAM Bhutan Yes NAM
Bolivia Yes NAM Bosnia/ Herzegovina No
Botswana Yes NAM Brazil Yes OPA
Brunei Darussalam Yes NAM Bulgaria No
Burkina Faso Yes Nam Burundi Yes NAM
Cambodia Yes NAM Cameroon Yes NAM
Canada Yes Gov Cape Verde Yes NAM
Cent. Afric. Rep.Yes NAM Chad Yes NAM
Chile Yes OPA China No
Columbia Yes NAM Comoros Yes NAM
Congo Yes NAM Costa Rica Yes OPA
Cote d'Ivoire Yes NAM Croatia No
Cuba Yes NAM Cyprus Yes NAM
Czech Republic No DPRK Yes NAM
Denmark Yes Gov. Djibouti Yes NAM
Dominica Yes OPA Dominican Rep. Yes OPA
Ecuador Yes NAM Egypt Yes NAM
El Salvador Yes OPA Equatorial Guinea Yes NAM
Eritrea Yes NAM Estonia No
Ethiopia Yes NAM Fiji Yes SPF
Finland Yes Gov France No
Gabon Yes NAM Gambia Yes NAM
Georgia No Germany Yes Gov. Ghana
Yes NAM Greece No
Grenada Yes NAM Guatemala Yes NAM
Guinea Yes NAM Guinea-bassau Yes NAM
Guyana Yes NAM Haiti Yes OPA
Honduras Yes OPA Hungary No
Iceland Yes NOR India Yes NAM
Indonesia Yes NAM Iran Yes NAM
Iraq Yes NAM Ireland Yes Gov
Isreal No Italy Yes Gov.
Jamaica Yes NAM Japan Yes Gov.
Jordan Yes NAM Kazakhstan Yes Gov
Kenya Yes NAM Kuwait Yes NAM
Kyrgyzstan No Lao PDR Yes NAM
Latvia No Lebanon Yes NAM
Lesotho Yes NAM Liberia Yes NAM
Libyan Arab Jam. Yes NAM Liechtenstein No
Lithuania No Luxembourg Yes Gov.
Madagascar Yes NAM Malawi Yes NAM
Malaysia Yes NAM Maldives Yes NAM
Mali Yes NAM Malta Yes NAM
Marshall Islands Yes SPF Mauritania Yes NAM
Mauritius Yes NAM Mexico Yes G21
Micronesia Yes SPF Monaco No
Mongolia Yes NAM Morocco Yes NAM
Mozambique Yes NAM Myanmar Yes NAM
Namibia Yes NAM Nepal Yes NAM
Netherlands Yes Gov. New Zealand Yes SPF
Nicaragua Yes NAM Niger Yes NAM
Nigeria Yes NAM Norway Yes Gov.
Oman Yes NAM Pakistan Yes NAM
Panama Yes OPA Papua New Guinea Yes SPF
Paraguay Yes OPA Peru Yes NAM
Philipinnes Yes NAM Poland Yes Gov
Portugal No Qatar Yes NAM
Republic of Korea Yes Gov Rep. of Moldova No
Romania No Russian Fed. Yes Gov
Rwanda Yes NAM Saint Kitts/Nevis Yes OPA
Saint Lucia Yes NAM St. Vicent/Grenadines Yes OPA Samoa
Yes SPF San Marino No
Sao Tome/Principe Yes NAM Saudi Arabia Yes NAM
Senegal Yes NAM Seychelles Yes NAM
Sierra Leone Yes NAM Singapore Yes NAM
Slovakia No Slovenia No
Soloman Islands Yes SPF Somalia Yes NAM
South Africa Yes NAM Spain Yes Gov
Sri Lanka Yes NAM Sudan Yes NAM
Suriname Yes NAM Swaziland Yes NAM
Sweden Yes Gov. Syrian Arab Rep. Yes NAM
Tajikistan No Thailand Yes NAM
Macedonia No Togo Yes NAM
Trinidad and Tobago Yes NAM Tunisia Yes NAM
Turkey No Turkmenistan No
Uganda Yes NAM Ukraine Yes Gov. United
Arab Emirates Yes NAM United Kingdom No
UR of Tanzania Yes NAM USA Yes Gov.
Uruguay Yes OPA Uzbekistan No
Vanuatu Yes NAM Venezuela Yes NAM Viet
Nam Yes NAM Yemen Yes NAM
[Yugoslavia Yes NAM] Zaire Yes NAM Zambia
Yes NAM Zimbabwe Yes NAM
Key.
G21.
* The group of 21 is extremely disappointed and fully shares the concern expressed by the international community at the decisions recently taken by nuclear weapon state to suspend its moratorium and resume nuclear weapon testing soon, as well as at the nuclear test recently conducted by another nuclear weapon state.... this is a serious step back to the ongoing negotiations for a comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty and undermines its successful conclusion. [Presented by India on behalf of G21, 29/06/95]. Argentina, Algeria, Brazil, Cuba, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Kenya, Mexico, Morocco, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Sri Lanka, Venezuela and Zaire.
Non-aligned Movement (NAM).
* The Movement of Non-Aligned Countries condemns the recent tests conducted by a nuclear weapons state as well as the decision by another State to suspend its moratorium and to resume testing soon. The Movement remains unequivocally opposed to nuclear tests of any kind in all environments, particularly in light of consistent efforts by the international community to further promote measures for nuclear disarmament and non- proliferation of nuclear weapon in all its aspects as well as to preserve the global environment. [Statement by the Movement of Non-Aligned countries on the Testing of Nuclear Weapons, July 1995]
NAM includes ;-
Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Brunei Darusalaam, Burkina, Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Rep, Chad, Chile, Colombia, Comoros, Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Cuba, Cyprus, D.P.R.Korea, Djibouti Ecuador, Egypt, Eq. Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kenya, Kuwait, Lao.P.D.R, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libyan Arab J., Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines. Qatar, Rwanda, Saint Lucia, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Somalia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Syrian Arab Rep., Thailand, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, United Rep. of Tanzania, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Yemen, Yugoslavia, Zaire, Zambia, Zimbabwe,
Nordic Countries.
* Denmark, on behalf of the five Nordic countries, issued a statement at the NPT Review and Extension Conference, calling for a continued moratorium: "The negotiations on a comprehensive test-ban treaty should be concluded as soon as possible. Until that has been accomplished all nuclear-weapon States, including China, must refrain from nuclear testing." (NPT/Conf. 1995/31, May 9th 1995].
OPANAL.
* The Council of OPANAL firmly exhorts the Governments of France to reconsider such decision and refrain from making future essays. Such decision may, inclusive, affect the favorable atmosphere for the development of the negotiations environment on the Treaty for the Total Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons being held in the Conference of Disarmament at Geneva, as well as to endanger the important achievements reached in nuclear disarmament matters. - Declaration of the Council of Opanal on the Resumption, by France, of Nuclear Essays in the South Pacific, June 16th 1995. [Antigua y Barbuda, Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Belice, Bolivaia, Brasil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Chile, Dominica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Granada, Guatemala, Guymala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Rep. Dominicana, PSan Kitts y Nevis, San Vicente y Las Granadiag, Santa Lucia, Suriname, Trinidad y Tobado, Uruguay, Venezuela.]
South Pacific Forum
* A statement made by Australia at the Conference of Disarmament in Geneva on the 20th June 1995, "On behalf of the South Pacific Forum Heads of Government as current Chair of the Forum, I condemn France's decision to resume nuclear testing in the South Pacific.
Individual Forum Governments have already statements and protests that reflect the depth of their disappointment. The immediate widerspread public antagonism to France's decision right across the South Pacific reflects the resentment felt by our peoples. Forum Heads of Government understand and share these feelings. On their behalf, I express our unequivocal, opposition to France's decision."
On behalf of the South Pacific Forum, who include. Austrialia, Cook Islands, Federation of States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribatai, Nauru, New Zealand, Niue, Papua New Guinea, Republic of Marshall Islands, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Western Samoa.