Bahamas ratifies nuclear test ban treaty

Posted 11 28 2007 5:11AM

VIENNA (Reuters) - The Bahamas has ratified theComprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, raising to 141 thenumber of full member states, the Vienna-based agency thatadministers the pact said on Tuesday.

But the treaty, which prohibits all nuclear explosions,will not enter into force before it is ratified by all 44states listed in an annex that took part in the 1996 treatynegotiations and have nuclear power or research reactors.

Ten of the 44 have signed but not ratified the pact,including Iran, Israel, North Korea, India, Pakistan, China andthe United States.

The last five are declared nuclear weapons states, whileIsrael is widely assumed to be one but never confirmed this.

Iran denies Western suspicions that it is secretly tryingto build nuclear weapons, insisting its uranium enrichmentprogram is for electricity generation only.

States that have ratified the treaty urged laggards at aSeptember review meeting to do the same as quickly as possibleto prevent a loss in credibility of the pact.

(Reporting by Mark Heinrich)