Editing Weapon of mass destruction (section)

==International law==
{{See also|Arms control|List of weapons of mass destruction treaties}}
The development and use of WMD is governed by several international [[conventions and treaties]].
{| class="wikitable"
!Treaty
!Date signed
!Date of entry into force
!Number of states parties
!Objective
|-
|[[Geneva Protocol]]<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Disarmament Treaties Database: 1925 Geneva Protocol|url=http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/1925|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190521142454/http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/1925|archive-date=21 May 2019|access-date=2021-02-10|website=[[United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs]]}}</ref>
|17 June 1925
|8 February 1928
|145
|Ban the use of chemical and biological weapons in international armed conflicts
|-
|[[Partial Test Ban Treaty|Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty]]<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Disarmament Treaties Database: Partial Test Ban Treaty|url=http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/test_ban|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202050200/http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/test_ban|archive-date=2 February 2017|access-date=2021-02-10|website=[[United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs]]}}</ref>
|5 August 1963
|10 October 1963
|126 ([[List of parties to the Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty|list]])
|Ban all [[Nuclear weapons testing|nuclear weapons tests]] except for those conducted underground
|-
|[[Outer Space Treaty]]<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Disarmament Treaties Database: Outer Space Treaty|url=http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/outer_space|access-date=2021-02-10|website=[[United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs]]}}</ref>
|27 January 1967
|10 October 1967
|111
|Ban stationing of WMD in space
|-
|[[Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty]] (NPT)<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Disarmament Treaties Database: Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT)|url=http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/npt|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180803083727/http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/npt|archive-date=3 August 2018|access-date=2021-02-10|website=[[United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs]]}}</ref>
|1 July 1968
|5 March 1970
|190 ([[List of parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons|list]])
|1. prevent nuclear proliferation; 2. promote nuclear disarmament; 3. promote peaceful uses of nuclear energy
|-
|[[Seabed Arms Control Treaty]]<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Disarmament Treaties Database: Sea-bed Treaty|url=http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/sea_bed|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201203225625/http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/sea_bed|archive-date=3 December 2020|access-date=2021-02-10|website=[[United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs]]}}</ref>
|11 February 1971
|18 May 1972
|94
|Ban stationing of WMD on the ocean floor
|-
|[[Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty|Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty]] (CTBT)<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Disarmament Treaties Database: Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty|url=http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/ctbt|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201203224018/http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/ctbt|archive-date=3 December 2020|access-date=2021-02-10|website=[[United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs]]}}</ref>
|10 September 1996
|Not in force
|176 ([[List of parties to the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty|list]])
|Ban all nuclear weapons tests
|-
|[[Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention]] (BWC)<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Disarmament Treaties Database: Biological Weapons Convention|url=http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/bwc|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210202055505/http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/bwc|archive-date=2 February 2021|access-date=2021-02-10|website=[[United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs]]}}</ref>
|10 April 1972
|26 March 1975
|184 ([[List of parties to the Biological Weapons Convention|list]])
|Comprehensively ban [[biological agent|biological weapons]]
|-
|[[Chemical Weapons Convention]] (CWC)<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Disarmament Treaties Database: Chemical Weapons Convention|url=http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/cwc|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201203223850/http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/cwc|archive-date=3 December 2020|access-date=2021-02-10|website=[[United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs]]}}</ref>
|3 September 1992
|29 April 1997
|193 ([[List of parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention|list]])
|Comprehensively ban [[chemical weapon]]s
|-
|[[Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons]] (TPNW)<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Disarmament Treaties Database: Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons|url=http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/tpnw|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126050128/http://disarmament.un.org/treaties/t/tpnw|archive-date=26 January 2021|access-date=2021-02-10|website=[[United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs]]}}</ref>
|20 September 2017
|22 January 2021
|68 ([[List of parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons|list]])
|Comprehensively ban [[nuclear weapon]]s
|}