G-8 calls for non-proliferation

The G-8 leaders have committed themselves to work together and with other states and institutions in the fight against the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, including by preventing them from falling into the hands of terrorists.

'The proliferation of WMDs and their means of delivery, together with international terrorism remain the pre-eminent threat to international peace and security. The international community must therefore boldly confront this challenge, and act decisively to tackle this threat,' a G-8 statement on non-proliferation said.

As an essential element of their efforts to confront proliferation, they said they were determined to fulfill arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation obligations and commitments under relevant international treaties, conventions and multilaterally-agreed arrangements to which they were parties or in which they participate.

'We call on all other states to meet their obligations and commitments in full in this regard. We rededicate ourselves to the re-invigoration of relevant multilateral fora, beginning with the Conference on Disarmament. These efforts will contribute to the further reinforcement of the global non-proliferation regime,' they said.

The leaders of the United States, Britain, Russia, France, Italy, Germany, Canada and Japan called on all states not party to the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, the Chemical Weapons Convention, the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention and the 1925 Geneva Protocol to accede to them without delay and those states that have not yet done so to subscribe to the Hague Code of Conduct Against Ballistic Missile Proliferation.

''We urge all states concerned to strictly observe a moratorium on nuclear weapon test explosions or any other nuclear explosions,'' they said.