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Over 90 countries on Monday night adopted a code of conduct aimed at preventing proliferation of ballistic missiles.
India and Pakistan, however, were the notable absentees when The International Code of Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation [ICOC] was adopted at the Dutch capital The Hague.
Dutch Foreign Minister Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said, "It is the first global non-proliferation instrument that specifically deals with systems capable of delivering weapons of mass destruction."
"It is a first step and an important step, 92 countries is quite substantial but we miss several important countries of concern like China, India, Pakistan, Iraq and Iran," de Hoop Scheffer admitted.
The 92 nations included all the 15 European Union members, plus nuclear powers Russia and the United States.
The code of conduct is designed to ensure greater transparency on the development and testing of ballistic missiles and requires signatory states to prepare an annual report on their programmes and to signal any upcoming weapons tests.
Agencies
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