Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

First, I'll make a point about the elimination of nuclear weapons. I know that those who advocate for the TPNW—and Senator Pocock did so in that question—construe the argument as if that is the only way one can demonstrate a commitment to nuclear disarmament. We disagree. We believe that the cornerstone of the nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament regime is the nuclear non-proliferation treaty.

I make the point that we already, as a country, have made a very clear commitment internationally that we do not have and will not seek nuclear weapons. We have legally binding commitments not to acquire, possess or have control over nuclear weapons under both the non-proliferation treaty on nuclear weapons and the Treaty of Rarotonga. There's no question that we recognise the devastating consequences for humanity of any use of nuclear weapons. What we do say is that we need to work with others to strengthen the NPT. We need to join with others, as we have, for a Fissile Material Cut-Off Treaty. We need to work with the IAEA—the International Atomic Energy Agency—to ensure the peaceful use of technology to combat proliferation and nuclear security risks.

The government shares the TPNW's ambition for a world without nuclear weapons. We're committed to engage constructively to identify possible pathways to disarmament. As the senator will know, under this government we have determined to attend the two meetings of state parties under the Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons as an observer. We have chosen to abstain rather than vote against the UN General Assembly resolution, which I think is the reference the senator made—unlike the previous government. And we will continue to engage both with the UN process and with civil society, and we'll take a considered approach to the treaty.