James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

Australia shares with the international community the goal of a peaceful and secure world free of nuclear weapons. Australia will not participate in the forthcoming UN conference on the negotiated treaty to ban nuclear weapons. This approach is consistent with Australia's clear and longstanding position on the proposed nuclear weapons ban treaty. Australia voted against the United Nations General Assembly resolution No. 71, calling for negotiations on a nuclear weapons ban treaty. Australia was among 83 countries that did not vote in favour of that resolution and among 38 countries to vote against it. The proposed ban treaty would not advance nuclear disarmament. It will be ineffective in eliminating or even reducing nuclear weapons arsenals. It would not enhance security. It would have no effective verification measures to ensure compliance, and it risks undermining the nuclear nonproliferation treaty by creating ambiguity and confusion through parallel obligations and by deepening divisions between nuclear and non-nuclear-weapon states.

Question agreed to.