Why Did Australia Try to Block a Ban on Nuclear Weapons at the UN?
ByKatherine Gillespie
The Conference on Disarmament, attended by representatives from 120 countries, was expected to kickstart negotiations for a complete international ban on nuclear weapons. However, discussions stalled when Australia attempted to derail the meeting by single-handedly forcing a vote on a report recommending disarmament, which had been expected to pass unanimously. Ultimately, Australia failed to block the report.
Despite Australia’s opposition, the report eventually passed the additional vote by 68 to 22. Most of the nations who voted with Australia to oppose the report were from Eastern Europe.
The report—put forward at the conference—is fairly innocuous, recommending that negotiations for complete nuclear weapons ban should begin next year. While Australia’s opposition may have shocked the international community, its stance on a nuclear ban have been public knowledge since 2015, when documents revealed the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) believes Australia relies on US nuclear weapons as a deterrent.
Documents secured by Fairfax under the Freedom of Information Actsuggest, “Australia has an abiding interest in a safe, secure, and reliable United States nuclear stockpile.” Australia currently doesn’t have any nuclear weapons of its own.
The statement on DFAT’s website mentions nothing of the US rationale, instead arguing that “while a near-term ban treaty on nuclear weapons might seem to be a straightforward and emotionally appealing way to delegitimise and eradicate nuclear weapons, the Australian Government does not believe disarmament can be imposed in this way.”
However, anti-nuclear campaigners have been highly critical of Australia’s behaviour at the UN conference. “Australia is resisting the tide of history. A majority of nations believe that nuclear weapons are unacceptable and must be prohibited. And now they are ready to negotiate a ban,” said Tim Wright, the Asia-Pacific director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons in a statement to VICE this morning.
Wright characterised the Australian Government’s decision to block the report as “shameful and outrageous.” He also warned the decision could alienate Australia from its neighbours in Asia and the Pacific, who strongly oppose weapons of mass destruction.
In response to these criticisms, the Australian Government says pushing for a ban alone “would divert attention from the sustained, practical steps needed for effective disarmament” because it doesn’t engage countries with nuclear weapons, or address the underlying reasons why they believe they need nuclear weapons to be safe. “We need to create an environment where all countries, including the nuclear-armed states and those who rely on their nuclear umbrellas, believe themselves to be more secure without nuclear weapons,” the DFAT statement reads.
Moves towards a complete nuclear ban have come as a result of many UN member states viewing the UN’s existing non-proliferation treaty as outdated and ineffective. The treaty came into force in 1970, but since then three new states have conducted nuclear tests—India, Pakistan and North Korea
ByKatherine Gillespie
From the column ‘The VICE Guide to Right Now’
An artist’s impression of Australia’s ambassador to the UN. Image via
Australia surprised the world
at a United Nations meeting in Geneva over the weekend, being the only
country to oppose an international ban on nuclear weapons.The Conference on Disarmament, attended by representatives from 120 countries, was expected to kickstart negotiations for a complete international ban on nuclear weapons. However, discussions stalled when Australia attempted to derail the meeting by single-handedly forcing a vote on a report recommending disarmament, which had been expected to pass unanimously. Ultimately, Australia failed to block the report.
Despite Australia’s opposition, the report eventually passed the additional vote by 68 to 22. Most of the nations who voted with Australia to oppose the report were from Eastern Europe.
The report—put forward at the conference—is fairly innocuous, recommending that negotiations for complete nuclear weapons ban should begin next year. While Australia’s opposition may have shocked the international community, its stance on a nuclear ban have been public knowledge since 2015, when documents revealed the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) believes Australia relies on US nuclear weapons as a deterrent.
Documents secured by Fairfax under the Freedom of Information Actsuggest, “Australia has an abiding interest in a safe, secure, and reliable United States nuclear stockpile.” Australia currently doesn’t have any nuclear weapons of its own.
The statement on DFAT’s website mentions nothing of the US rationale, instead arguing that “while a near-term ban treaty on nuclear weapons might seem to be a straightforward and emotionally appealing way to delegitimise and eradicate nuclear weapons, the Australian Government does not believe disarmament can be imposed in this way.”
However, anti-nuclear campaigners have been highly critical of Australia’s behaviour at the UN conference. “Australia is resisting the tide of history. A majority of nations believe that nuclear weapons are unacceptable and must be prohibited. And now they are ready to negotiate a ban,” said Tim Wright, the Asia-Pacific director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons in a statement to VICE this morning.
Wright characterised the Australian Government’s decision to block the report as “shameful and outrageous.” He also warned the decision could alienate Australia from its neighbours in Asia and the Pacific, who strongly oppose weapons of mass destruction.
In response to these criticisms, the Australian Government says pushing for a ban alone “would divert attention from the sustained, practical steps needed for effective disarmament” because it doesn’t engage countries with nuclear weapons, or address the underlying reasons why they believe they need nuclear weapons to be safe. “We need to create an environment where all countries, including the nuclear-armed states and those who rely on their nuclear umbrellas, believe themselves to be more secure without nuclear weapons,” the DFAT statement reads.
Moves towards a complete nuclear ban have come as a result of many UN member states viewing the UN’s existing non-proliferation treaty as outdated and ineffective. The treaty came into force in 1970, but since then three new states have conducted nuclear tests—India, Pakistan and North Korea
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