Editing Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (section)

==History==

=== Background ===
The movement for international control of [[nuclear weapon]]s began in 1945, with a call from Canada and the United Kingdom for a conference on the subject.{{sfn|Polsby|1984|p=56}} In June 1946, [[Bernard Baruch]], an emissary of President [[Harry S. Truman]], proposed the [[Baruch Plan]] before the United Nations Atomic Energy Commission, which called for an international system of controls on the production of atomic energy. The plan, which would serve as the basis for U.S. nuclear policy into the 1950s, was rejected by the [[Soviet Union]] as a US ploy to cement its nuclear dominance.{{sfn|Strode|1990|p=7}}{{sfn|Polsby|1984|pp=57–58}}

Between the [[Trinity (nuclear test)|Trinity nuclear test]] of 16 July 1945 and the signing of the [[Partial Test Ban Treaty]] (PTBT) on 5 August 1963, 499 nuclear tests were conducted.<ref name=delcoigne>{{cite web |title=The Test Ban Treaty |last=Delcoigne |first=G.C. |publisher=IAEA |page=18 |url=https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/files/publications/magazines/bulletin/bull15-4/15403500322.pdf |access-date=11 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160827190927/https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/files/publications/magazines/bulletin/bull15-4/15403500322.pdf |archive-date=27 August 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> Much of the impetus for the PTBT, the precursor to the CTBT, was rising public concern surrounding the size and resulting [[nuclear fallout]] from underwater and atmospheric nuclear tests, particularly tests of powerful [[thermonuclear weapons]] (hydrogen bombs). The [[Castle Bravo]] test of 1 March 1954, in particular, attracted significant attention as the detonation resulted in fallout that spread over inhabited areas and sickened a group of Japanese fishermen.<ref name=atomicheritage>{{cite web |title=Limited or Partial Test Ban Treaty (LTBT/PTBT) |publisher=[[Atomic Heritage Foundation]] |url=http://www.atomicheritage.org/history/limited-or-partial-test-ban-treaty-ltbtptbt |access-date=1 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160729082217/https://www.atomicheritage.org/history/limited-or-partial-test-ban-treaty-ltbtptbt |archive-date=29 July 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=nsarchive>{{cite web |title=The Making of the Limited Test Ban Treaty, 1958–1963 |last1=Burr |first1=William |last2=Montford |first2=Hector L. |publisher=[[National Security Archive]] |date=3 August 2003 |url=http://nsarchive.gwu.edu/NSAEBB/NSAEBB94/ |access-date=7 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160819131217/http://nsarchive.gwu.edu/NSAEBB/NSAEBB94/ |archive-date=19 August 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="nti">{{cite news|url=http://www.nti.org/learn/treaties-and-regimes/treaty-banning-nuclear-test-atmosphere-outer-space-and-under-water-partial-test-ban-treaty-ptbt/|title=Treaty Banning Nuclear Tests in the Atmosphere, in Outer Space and Under Water (Partial Test Ban Treaty) (PTBT)|date=26 October 2011|newspaper=[[Nuclear Threat Initiative]]|access-date=31 July 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160726123750/http://www.nti.org/learn/treaties-and-regimes/treaty-banning-nuclear-test-atmosphere-outer-space-and-under-water-partial-test-ban-treaty-ptbt/|archive-date=26 July 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>{{sfn|Rhodes|2005|p=542}}{{sfn|Strode|1990|p=31}} Between 1945 and 1963, the US conducted 215 atmospheric tests, the Soviet Union conducted 219, the UK conducted 21, and [[France]] conducted 4.<ref name=nrdc>{{cite web |title=Archive of Nuclear Data |url=http://www.nrdc.org/nuclear/nudb/datab15.asp |publisher=[[Natural Resources Defense Council]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071010072829/http://www.nrdc.org/nuclear/nudb/datab15.asp |archive-date=10 October 2007 |access-date=6 August 2016}}</ref>

In 1954, following the Castle Bravo test, Prime Minister [[Jawaharlal Nehru]] of [[India]] issued the first appeal for a "standstill agreement" on testing, which was soon echoed by the British [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]].{{sfn|Burns|Siracusa|2013|p=247}}{{sfn|Polsby|1984|p=58}}<ref name=bravo>{{cite web |title=1 March 1954 – Castle Bravo |publisher=Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization |url=https://www.ctbto.org/specials/testing-times/1-march-1954-castle-bravo/ |access-date=31 July 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160728055901/http://www.ctbto.org/specials/testing-times/1-march-1954-castle-bravo/ |archive-date=28 July 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> Negotiations on a comprehensive test ban, primarily involving the US, UK, and the Soviet Union, began in 1955 following a proposal by Soviet leader [[Nikita Khrushchev]].{{sfn|Rhodes|2008|p=72}}{{sfn|Reeves|1993|p=121}} Of primary concern throughout the negotiations, which would stretch—with some interruptions—to July 1963, was the system of verifying compliance with the test ban and detecting illicit tests. On the Western side, there were concerns that the Soviet Union would be able to circumvent any test ban and secretly leap ahead in the [[nuclear arms race]].{{sfn|Burns|Siracusa|2013|p=305}}{{sfn|Ambrose|1991|pp=457–458}}{{sfn|Seaborg|1981|pp=8–9}} These fears were amplified following the US [[Operation Plumbbob|''Rainier'']] shot of 19 September 1957, which was the first contained underground test of a nuclear weapon. Though the US held a significant advantage in underground testing capabilities, there was worry that the Soviet Union would be able to covertly conduct underground tests during a test ban, as underground detonations were more challenging to detect than above-ground tests.{{sfn|Seaborg|1981|p=9}}{{sfn|Evangelista|1999|pp=85–86}} On the Soviet side, conversely, the on-site compliance inspections demanded by the US and UK were seen as amounting to espionage.{{sfn|Evangelista|1999|p=79}} Disagreement over verification would lead to the Anglo-American and Soviet negotiators abandoning a comprehensive test ban (i.e., a ban on all tests, including those underground) in favor of a partial ban, which would be finalized on 25 July 1963. The PTBT, joined by 123 states following the original three parties, banned detonations for military and civilian purposes underwater, in the atmosphere, and outer space.{{sfn|Schlesinger|2002|pp=905–906, 910}}<ref name=siglist>{{cite web |title=Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty & Partial Test Ban Treaty Membership |url=http://www.nti.org/media/pdfs/apmctbt_10.pdf |publisher=Nuclear Threat Initiative |access-date=11 August 2016 |date=8 June 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160916163532/http://www.nti.org/media/pdfs/apmctbt_10.pdf |archive-date=16 September 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=unoda>{{cite web |title=Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapon Tests in the Atmosphere, in Outer Space and Under Water |publisher=[[United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs]] |access-date=11 August 2016 |url=http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/test_ban/text}}</ref>

The PTBT had mixed results. On the one hand, enactment of the treaty was followed by a substantial drop in the atmospheric concentration of radioactive particles.<ref name=radiocarbon>{{cite web |title=Radiocarbon Dating |publisher=[[Utrecht University]] |url=http://web.science.uu.nl/AMS/Radiocarbon.htm |access-date=31 July 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160820213848/http://web.science.uu.nl/AMS/Radiocarbon.htm |archive-date=20 August 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=The Technical Details: The Bomb Spike |publisher=[[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration]] |url=http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/outreach/isotopes/bombspike.html |access-date=12 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160808120347/http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/outreach/isotopes/bombspike.html |archive-date=8 August 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> On the other hand, [[nuclear proliferation]] was not halted entirely (though it may have been slowed) and nuclear testing continued at a rapid clip. Compared to the 499 tests from 1945 to the signing of the PTBT, 436 tests were conducted over the ten years following the PTBT.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Test Ban Treaty |last=Delcoigne |first=G.C. |publisher=IAEA |page=18 |url=https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/files/publications/magazines/bulletin/bull15-4/15403500322.pdf |access-date=11 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160827190927/https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/files/publications/magazines/bulletin/bull15-4/15403500322.pdf |archive-date=27 August 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref>{{sfn|Rhodes|2008|p=72}} Furthermore, US and Soviet underground testing continued "venting" radioactive gas into the atmosphere.<ref name=nsa2>{{cite web |title=The Limited Test Ban Treaty – 50 Years Later: New Documents Throw Light on Accord Banning Atmospheric Nuclear Testing |last=Burr |first=William |publisher=National Security Archive |date=2 August 2013 |url=http://nsarchive.gwu.edu/nukevault/ebb433/ |access-date=12 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160730024645/http://nsarchive.gwu.edu/nukevault/ebb433/ |archive-date=30 July 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> Additionally, though underground testing was generally safer than above-ground testing, underground tests continued to risk the leaking of [[radionuclide]]s, including [[plutonium]], into the ground.<ref>{{cite web |title=General Overview of the Effects of Nuclear Testing |publisher=CTBTO Preparatory Commission |url=https://www.ctbto.org/nuclear-testing/the-effects-of-nuclear-testing/general-overview-of-theeffects-of-nuclear-testing/ |access-date=12 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160805084943/http://www.ctbto.org/nuclear-testing/the-effects-of-nuclear-testing/general-overview-of-theeffects-of-nuclear-testing/ |archive-date=5 August 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite report |title=Report on the Health Consequences to the American Population from Nuclear Weapons Tests Conducted by the United States and Other Nations |chapter=Fallout from Nuclear Weapons |publisher=[[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]] |date=May 2005 |pages=20–21 |chapter-url=https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/radiation/fallout/ |access-date=9 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131204164348/http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/radiation/fallout/ |archive-date=4 December 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.armscontrol.org/act/2003_10/LTBT|work=Arms Control Association|author=Daryl Kimball and Wade Boese|date=June 2009|access-date=21 May 2012|title=Limited Test Ban Treaty Turns 40|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130105091513/http://www.armscontrol.org/act/2003_10/LTBT|archive-date=5 January 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> From 1964 through 1996, the year of the CTBT's adoption, an estimated 1,377 underground nuclear tests were conducted. The final non-underground (atmospheric or underwater) test was conducted by China in 1980.<ref name=sipritally>{{cite book |url=https://www.ctbto.org/fileadmin/user_upload/pdf/Sipri_table12b.pdf |title=Armaments, Disarmament and International Security |author=Stockholm International Peace Research Institute |author-link=Stockholm International Peace Research Institute |date=2007 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=New York, NY |pages=555–556 |access-date=15 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160806042538/http://www.ctbto.org/fileadmin/user_upload/pdf/Sipri_table12b.pdf |archive-date=6 August 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=nuclear>{{cite web|work=Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization|year=2012|url=http://www.ctbto.org/nuclear-testing/history-of-nuclear-testing/world-overview/page-1-world-overview/|title=Nuclear testing world overview|access-date=21 May 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120117223626/http://www.ctbto.org/nuclear-testing/history-of-nuclear-testing/world-overview/page-1-world-overview/|archive-date=17 January 2012|url-status=live}}</ref>

The PTBT has been seen as a step towards the [[Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty]] (NPT) of 1968, which directly referenced the PTBT.<ref name=faschron>{{cite web |title=Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty Chronology |publisher=Federation of American Scientists |url=http://fas.org/nuke/control/ctbt/chron1.htm |access-date=7 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160813223746/https://fas.org/nuke/control/ctbt/chron1.htm |archive-date=13 August 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> Under the NPT, non-nuclear weapon states were prohibited from possessing, manufacturing, and acquiring nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices. All signatories, including nuclear weapon states, were committed to the goal of total [[nuclear disarmament]]. However, [[India]], [[Pakistan]], and [[Israel]] have declined to sign the NPT on the grounds that such a treaty is fundamentally discriminatory as it places limitations on states that do not have nuclear weapons while making no efforts to curb weapons development by declared nuclear weapons states.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and India |url=https://old.indiatomorrow.net/eng/nuclear-non-proliferation-treaty-and-india#:~:text=India%20is%20among%20the%20very%20few%20countries%20who,its%20national%20interests%20or%20infringe%20on%20its%20sovereignty. |access-date=2023-01-23 |website=IndiaTomorrow.net}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Spring |first=Baker |title=Nuclear India and the Non-Proliferation Treaty |url=https://www.heritage.org/defense/report/nuclear-india-and-the-non-proliferation-treaty |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170428195145/http://www.heritage.org/defense/report/nuclear-india-and-the-non-proliferation-treaty |url-status=unfit |archive-date=28 April 2017 |access-date=2023-01-23 |website=The Heritage Foundation |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=India, China and the Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT) - World Nuclear Association |url=https://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/safety-and-security/non-proliferation/india,-china-npt.aspx |access-date=2023-01-23 |website=www.world-nuclear.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=NPT (Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty) |url=https://www.insightsonindia.com/science-technology/nuclear-technology/npt/ |access-date=2023-01-23 |website=INSIGHTSIAS |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== A comprehensive ban ===

In 1974, a step towards a comprehensive test ban was made with the [[Threshold Test Ban Treaty]] (TTBT), ratified by the US and Soviet Union, which banned underground tests with yields above 150 kilotons.<ref name="nsa2" /><ref>{{cite web |title=The Flawed Test Ban Treaty |publisher=[[The Heritage Foundation]] |date=27 March 1984 |url=http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/1984/03/the-flawed-test-ban-treaty |access-date=12 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160920213407/http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/1984/03/the-flawed-test-ban-treaty |archive-date=20 September 2016 |url-status=unfit}}</ref> In April 1976, the two states reached agreement on the [[Peaceful Nuclear Explosions Treaty]] (PNET), which concerns nuclear detonations outside the weapons sites discussed in the TTBT. As in the TTBT, the US and Soviet Union agreed to bar [[peaceful nuclear explosions]] (PNEs) at these other locations with yields above 150 kilotons, as well as group explosions with total yields over 1,500 kilotons. To verify compliance, the PNET requires that states rely on [[national technical means of verification]], share information on explosions, and grant on-site access to counterparties. The TTBT and PNET entered into force on 11 December 1990.<ref name="pnetreaty">{{cite web |title=Peaceful Nuclear Explosions Treaty (PNET) |url=https://1997-2001.state.gov/www/global/arms/treaties/pne1.html#1 |publisher=[[United States Department of State]] |access-date=14 August 2016}}</ref>[[File:President Ronald Reagan talks with Mikhail Gorbachev in the Oval Office during the Washington Summit.jpg|thumb|250px|Reagan and Gorbachev, December 1987]]

In October 1977, the US, UK, and Soviet Union returned to negotiations over a test ban. These three nuclear powers made notable progress in the late 1970s, agreeing to terms on a ban on all testing, including a temporary prohibition on PNEs, but continued disagreements over the compliance mechanisms led to an end to negotiations ahead of [[Ronald Reagan]]'s inauguration as president in 1981.<ref name=faschron /> In 1985, Soviet leader [[Mikhail Gorbachev]] announced a unilateral testing moratorium, and in December 1986, Reagan reaffirmed US commitment to pursue the long-term goal of a comprehensive test ban. In February 1987, the Soviets ended their test moratorium as the US had not reciprocated. In November 1987, negotiations on a test ban restarted, followed by a joint US-Soviet program to research underground-test detection in December 1987.<ref name=faschron /><ref>{{cite news |title=In Remotest Nevada, a Joint U.S. and Soviet Test |last=Blakeslee |first=Sandra |date=18 August 1988 |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/08/18/world/in-remotest-nevada-a-joint-us-and-soviet-test.html |access-date=11 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160822101507/http://www.nytimes.com/1988/08/18/world/in-remotest-nevada-a-joint-us-and-soviet-test.html |archive-date=22 August 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Partially pressured by the protests causing the shutdown of the [[Semipalatinsk Test Site]], in October 1991, the Soviet Union announced another unilateral testing moratorium. Three days before its expiration, [[George H. W. Bush]] signed into law a reciprocal testing moratorium. President [[Bill Clinton]] later repeatedly extended this until the 1996 Treaty signature opening.<ref name="r072">{{cite web |date=1991-08-29 |title=Nuclear Testing and Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) Timeline |url=https://www.armscontrol.org/factsheets/nuclear-testing-and-comprehensive-test-ban-treaty-ctbt-timeline |access-date=2025-04-01 |website=Arms Control Association}}</ref>

The Treaty was adopted by the [[United Nations General Assembly]] on 10 September 1996.<ref name="untc2">United Nations Treaty Collection (2009).  "[http://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&id=488&chapter=26&lang=en Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150403215147/https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&id=488&chapter=26&lang=en|date=3 April 2015}}". Retrieved 23 August 2009.</ref> It opened for signature in New York on 24 September 1996.<ref name="untc2" /> The United States was the first nation to sign the treaty. Ratification by the US Senate was delayed by almost three years. On 13 October 1999, the resolution to ratify the CTBT, including an amendment of six safeguards, was defeated by a 51-48 vote, mostly along party lines. Unlike previous nuclear treaties, which had weeks of committee hearings and days of floor consideration, the CTBT received zero committee hearing and 18 hours of floor consideration. It was the first security-related treaty to be rejected by the Senate since the [[Treaty of Versailles]], 80 years prior.<ref name="l618">{{cite web |date=1999-09-01 |title=Senate Rejects Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty; Clinton Vows to Continue Moratorium |url=https://www.armscontrol.org/act/1999-09/press-releases/senate-rejects-comprehensive-test-ban-treaty-clinton-vows-continue |access-date=2025-04-02 |website=Arms Control Association}}</ref>

In the aftermath, and leadup to the [[2000 United States presidential election]], Republican candidates such as [[George W. Bush]] and [[John McCain]] voiced their opposition to the CTBT, but support for the testing moratorium. Following Bush's election victory, there was speculation testing would resume, pointing to the CTBT's "supreme national interest" provision where nations may withdraw if they feel their security is threatened by deteriorating warheads.<ref name="d175">{{cite journal |last=Hansen |first=Chuck |date=2001-03-01 |title=Beware the old story |journal=Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists |volume=57 |issue=2 |pages=52–55 |doi=10.2968/057002015 |issn=0096-3402}}</ref>

In October 2023, Russian president [[Vladimir Putin]] stated that since the United States had not ratified the CTBT, consideration could be given to [[treaty#Withdrawal|withdrawing]] Russia's ratification of the treaty. Later in the month, a law revoking ratification of the CTBT was passed by the Russian parliament.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://thehill.com/policy/international/4274998-russia-simulates-nuclear-strike-after-lawmakers-remind-test-ban-treaty-ratification/ |title=Russia simulates nuclear strike after lawmakers revoke test ban treaty ratification |last=Irwin |first=Lauren |date=25 October 2023 |website=The Hill |access-date=26 October 2023}}</ref> On 2 November, Putin officially signed into law the withdrawal of ratification of the treaty.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-11-02 |title=Putin revokes Russia's ratification of nuclear test ban treaty |language=en |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/putin-revokes-russias-ratification-nuclear-test-ban-treaty-2023-11-02/ |access-date=2023-11-02}}</ref>