THIS week marks a crucial event in the world’s calendar.
As tensions escalate and the threat of further war in Europe builds, dozens of nations – from Chile in the west to New Zealand in the east – will descend on New York to discuss a global treaty banning nuclear weapons.
The critical summit is known to delegates as "3MSP TPNW" – but in practice it is nothing so opaque.
What is the ‘3MSP TPNW'?
The 3MSP part stands for the “third meeting of states parties”, while the TPNW refers to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. The summit will take place from March 3-7.
Opened for signatures in September 2017, the TPNW itself came into force in January 2021.
The first multilateral nuclear disarmament treaty to be negotiated in more than two decades, the organisation behind the document – International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) – won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2017.
The TPNW – which you can read in full here – prohibits the development, possession, transfer, use, threat of use, assistance with, or hosting of nuclear weapons in any form.
It is a significant step beyond the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), which was signed in 1968 and only looked to prevent new countries from acquiring nuclear weapons.
United Nations secretary-general Antonio Guterres has called the TPNW “an important step towards the goal of a world free of nuclear weapons and a strong demonstration of support for multilateral approaches to nuclear disarmament”.
Why is The National in New York to report on it?
Scotland is home to some of the world’s most powerful nuclear weapons, although the Scottish Government rejects them.
The SNP have long committed an independent Scotland to signing the TPNW – which campaigners say would provide a strong legal basis on which to reject Trident being kept on the banks of the Clyde.
But the UK, as one of the world’s nuclear powers, has declined to sign the prohibition treaty – although it is a signatory to the NPT.
Scottish Secretary Ian Murray has called for the UK to have a greater involvement in the TPNW, saying he would push for the Labour Government to be represented at the meeting in New York this week.
As the Labour MP recognises, the discussions in New York this week are more than just diplomatic formalities – they represent a growing global movement to challenge the dominance of nuclear-armed states and push for genuine disarmament.
As Scotland continues to grapple with the reality of hosting the UK’s nuclear deterrent against the will of its government, the outcomes of this summit could have lasting implications.
Thanks to a funding partnership with Lex International, The National will be on the ground to bring you the latest developments, expert insights, and what it all means for Scotland’s future in the fight for a nuclear-free world.
