Arms Control Association

This past week, the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) has re-emerged in the international spotlight. On Wednesday, February 13, 2019, the Republic of Zimbabwe deposited its instrument of ratification of the CTBT to the United Nations. Zimbabwe’s accession to ratification status of the treaty follows the Kingdom of Thailand’s realization of ratification on September 25, 2018.Zimbabwe and Thailand mark progress toward universal ratification of the CTBT. Currently, 184 states have signed and 168 have ratified the treaty. However, the CTBT cannot enter into force until ratification by all…

On November 26, 2018, the Seventy-Third Session of the UN General Assembly met in New York, where the “Cooperation between the United Nations and the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization [CTBTO]” resolution was adopted.On the floor of the UN General Assembly, Dr. Lassina Zerbo, executive secretary of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) advocated for the CTBT, mentioned the resolution, and challenged states to invigorate their commitment to the treaty. The adopted resolution renews the international community’s goals of entering…

As of November 19, 2018, Australia’s International Monitoring System(IMS) stations for the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) are “operational and certified”. The operability of Australia’s twenty-one systems marks significant progress toward the CTBTO’s mission to establish 337 stations throughout the world that monitor for nuclear tests. Today, nearly 90% of stations are in service and certified against the CTBTO’s standards.According to the CTBTO, Australia boasts the third largest quantity of operationally certified IMS stations, following the United States and Russia. The…