The 11th Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) began at the United Nations in New York City on April 27 and will conclude on May 22. The NPT, which entered into force in 1970, is a landmark international treaty meant to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and to further the goals of nuclear disarmament; it has remained the cornerstone of the global nuclear non-proliferation regime. Almost 200 States parties have joined the Treaty, including the five nuclear-weapon States, making the NPT one of the most widely adhered-to multilateral disarmament agreements.
In August 2023, on the 78th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, four Catholic bishops formally created the Partnership for a World without Nuclear Weapons (of which Pax Christi USA is an affiliate member) to work on nuclear disarmament. The four dioceses — Santa Fe, NM; Seattle, WA; Hiroshima; and Nagasaki — represent the birthplace of nuclear weapons, the most deployed nuclear weapons in the United States, and the only two cities that to date have suffered atomic bombings.
Archbishops John Wester (Santa Fe), Paul Etienne (Seattle), Peter Michiaki Nakamura (Nagasaki), Bishop Alexis Mitsuru Shirahama (Hiroshima), and Archbishop Emeritus Joseph Mitsuaki Takami (Nagasaki) recently issued the following statement reiterating the moral imperative of nuclear abolition and their concerns regarding the unlikely success of this NPT meeting:
… We follow in the footsteps of our late Pope Francis, who declared that the mere possession of nuclear weapons is immoral. We are guided today by our Pope Leo, who, in his 2026 World Peace Day address declared:
“The idea of the deterrent power of military might, especially nuclear deterrence, is based on the irrationality of relations between nations, built not on law, justice and trust, but on fear and domination by force.”
Here, we believe that our Holy Father gets into the heart of the matter. For 56 years the 1970 NonProliferation Treaty (NPT) has acted as the cornerstone of nuclear weapons nonproliferation. However, the Treaty is now badly frayed, perhaps even in danger of collapsing. This is primarily due to the never-ending refusal of the nuclear weapons states to enter into serious negotiations leading to nuclear disarmament, which they pledged to long ago in NPT Article VI.
The one word rationale for this failure is always “deterrence,” that is to deter others from using nuclear weapons. But this deflects the blame from their own possession of immoral, genocidal weapons. One must ask, why is it that Russia and the United States have always rejected the minimal deterrence of just a few hundred nuclear warheads in order to keep thousands of warheads for nuclear warfighting? Why is it that all nine nuclear weapons powers are now spending enormous sums on so-called “modernization” programs to keep nuclear weapons forever?
Our Pope Leo calls for a world built on law, justice and peace. It is our God-given duty to pursue that. The US Constitution enshrines international treaties as the “supreme Law of the Land.” The essential bargain of the NPT was that the nuclear weapons powers promised to negotiate nuclear disarmament, in exchange for which all other nations promised to never acquire them. The nuclear weapons powers have not upheld their end of this legal bargain.
The NPT has been absolutely indispensable in limiting nuclear weapons proliferation to three non-NPT signatories (India, Pakistan and Israel) and one withdrawal (North Korea). But the last two NPT Review Conferences have utterly failed to outline any concrete steps toward nuclear disarmament. We don’t see how this one will succeed where the others have failed. Clearly the nuclear threats are escalating. The brutal practice of might makes right is ascendant, arms control treaties are gone, and we are sliding backwards with massive modernization programs to keep nuclear weapons forever. [Pax Christi USA emphasis]
We wish all of you at this NonProliferation Treaty Review Conference the very best of luck. We fervently hope and pray for a favorable outcome that genuinely leads to nuclear disarmament.
However, if past is prologue, that outcome is unlikely. If that is unfortunately the case, we will then put our faith in the first Review Conference of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), to be held this late November at the United Nations. The Vatican was the first nation-state to sign and ratify the TPNW. We will be there to help witness its further implementation.
Please know of our continued prayers for peace and healing. May you all help lead this suffering world to the promised land of a world free of nuclear weapons.
We deeply thank you for your efforts and pray for your every success.
Most Reverend Paul D. Etienne, Archbishop of Seattle, USA
Most Reverend Peter Michiaki Nakamura, Archbishop of Nagasaki, Japan
Most Reverend Alexis Mitsuru Shirahama, Bishop of Hiroshima, Japan
Most Reverend Joseph Mitsuaki Takami, Archbishop Emeritus of Nagasaki, Japan
Most Reverend John C. Wester, Archbishop of Santa Fe, USA
For more information about current legislation in front of the US Congress, watch the recording of the April 21 No Nukes Advocacy Hour, offered by Back from the Brink for Pax Christi members:
Faith leaders’ summit dialogue on nuclear weapons abolition
This spring, the Pax Christi New England Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (PCAN) is hosting a series of four virtual “summits,” each featuring five Catholic and other faith leaders, who will give brief presentations, exchange ideas, and field moderated questions from the Zoom audience on how to most effectively harness our collective efforts for nuclear abolition.
Learn more and register here.
