World leaders welcome Indonesian ratification of the CTBT

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon

The Secretary-General in his capacity as Depositary of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty welcomes the ratification of the Treaty by the House of Representatives of Indonesia on 6 December 2011. The Secretary-General encourages all States that have not yet done so to sign and ratify the Treaty and is counting upon the engaged leadership of the remaining eight States whose ratification is required for the Treaty's entry into force. Read the full statement here.

Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa

"Inevitably, the tide of history is turning in favor of nuclear disarmament. And as the international community moves closer to the enforcement of the CTBT, humankind also moves away from the perils of the age of nuclear weapons toward a future of more durable security and peace." Read the op-ed here.

United States President Barack Obama

"The United States welcomes Indonesia’s ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, (CTBT), which provides a strong example of the positive leadership role Indonesia can play in the global effort to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons...America must lead the global effort to prevent proliferation, and adoption and early entry into force of the CTBT is a vital part of that effort." Read the full statement here. Read the statement by the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton here.

Australian Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd

"This decision further attests to Indonesia's strong practical commitment to disarmament and will lend new impetus to efforts to universalise the CTBT, especially given Indonesia's role as the Non-Aligned Movement's Coordinator for Disarmament...Australia calls on all states yet to ratify the CTBT to follow Indonesia's lead and to do so at the earliest opportunity." Read the full statement here.

Austrian Foreign Minister Michael Spindelegger

"Indonesien hat einen Meilenstein in den internationalen Bemühungen für eine Welt ohne Atomwaffen gesetzt...Mit dieser Entscheidung wird ein starkes politisches Signal an jene weiteren acht Staaten gesendet, deren Ratifikation für das Inkrafttreten des CTBT erforderlich ist." Read full statement here.

EU High Representative Catherine Ashton

"I warmly welcome the ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) by Indonesia on 6 December 2011 and congratulate the Indonesian Government for their achievement. With its ratification, Indonesia confirmed its commitment to the objective of eliminating all nuclear test explosions worldwide." Read the full statement here (PDF).

French Foreign Ministry

"La France salue la ratification par l’Indonésie du Traité d’interdiction complète des essais nucléaires (TICE), qui porte désormais à 156 le nombre d’Etats parties au Traité. Cette annonce est d’autant plus importante qu’elle réduit à huit le nombre des Etats dont la ratification est indispensable à l’entrée en vigueur du Traité." Read the full statement here.

German Foreign Minister Guide Westerwelle

Foreign Minister Westerwelle welcomed the decision as a further advance that “will help pave the way for the Treaty to finally enter into force...all over the world the importance of nuclear disarmament and arms control is increasingly recognized.” Read the full statement here.

Japanese Foreign Minister K?ichir? Genba

"I wholeheartedly welcome that the parliament of the Republic of Indonesia...approved Indonesia's ratification of the Treaty on Tuesday, December 6. I believe that this is an important step forward for the Treaty's entry into force as it will encourage the remaining 8 Annex 2 States which have not ratified the treaty to ratify it." Read the full statement here.

Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs

"The Mexican government urges the countries that have not yet endorsed or adhered to the treaty to do so as soon as possible so that the CTBT can enter into force around the world. Its entry into force would make it difficult to modernize the existing nuclear arsenals and to develop new weapons, thereby strengthening international security." Read the full statement here.

New Zealand Disarmament Minister Georgina te Heuheu

"The CTBT is a key part of the international nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation regime. New Zealand calls on those remaining states who have not yet ratified this critical treaty to join Indonesia and do so without delay." Read the full statement here.

Republic of Korea Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Indonesia is one of the 44 states listed in Annex 2 of the treaty whose ratification is required for the CTBT to enter into force. As such, we believe that Indonesia’s ratification of the CTBT will encourage the ratification of other Annex 2 States, contributing to the effectuation of the CTBT. Read full statement here.

Russian Federation Ministry of Foreign Affairs

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Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt

"With this fine example of political leadership and international engagement by Indonesia, the CTBT moves yet one step further towards entry into force. This is indeed good news for nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation in all its aspects as well as for regional and international security." Read the full statement here.

Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs

“Turkey welcomes the ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban-Treaty (CTBT) by Indonesia and congratulates the Indonesian Government for taking this significant step which will bring the CTBT closer to its entry into force. We hope that this positive development will encourage ratification of the CTBT by the remaining eight Annex II States, whose ratification is required for the Treaty’s entry into force.” Read the full statement here.

UK Foreign Secretary William Hague

"This is a significant step towards the Treaty’s entry into force and to a global ban on nuclear weapon test explosions.  I now call on the remaining eight states that need to ratify the treaty for it to enter into force to do so." Read the full statement here. Media coverage of Indonesian ratification: click here to see press coverage from 30 November to 9 December.