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Nuclear non-proliferation treaty review conference at UN 2-27 May, as tense global events prompt warning of agreement's erosion.

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M2 PRESSWIRE-29 April 2005-UN: Nuclear non-proliferation treaty review conference at UN 2-27 May, as tense global events prompt warning of agreement's erosion(C)1994-2005 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD

RDATE:28042005

The Review Conference for the international treaty aimed at controlling nuclear-weapon proliferation opens at Headquarters on Monday, with a United Nations report having warned that a lack of compliance with commitments, withdrawals, a changing international security environment and diffusion of technology could soon make erosion of the non-proliferation regime "irreversible".

The report, the Secretary-General's High Level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change released last December, says that the danger has two aspects. First, some countries could, under cover of the current treaty, covertly develop full-scale weapons programmes, or acquire the material and expertise and withdraw from the treaty when ready to proceed. The second danger is the possible collapse of the whole non-proliferation regime, with some 40 countries possessing the ability to build nuclear weapons in a relatively short period of time if the treaty's constraints no longer apply.

"Both concerns are now very real", the Panel states, and nuclear proliferation by States increases the availability of the material and technology necessary for a "nightmare" scenario -- nuclear terrorism. Scientists have repeatedly warned of the ease with which terrorists could assemble a simple...

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