“This is the third consecutive RevCon in a row – 16 years – where diplomats have failed to agree on a consensus.”
By the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND)
After a month of negotiations, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference ended last Friday without a consensus outcome document that would strengthen the treaty amid growing nuclear risks and threats.
Entering into force in 1970, the NPT aims to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons, advance nuclear disarmament efforts, and promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy. It recognises five Nuclear Weapons States – the US, Russia, Britain, France, and China – who under Article VI of the treaty must pursue disarmament in good faith.
The NPT Review Conference takes place every five years and is an opportunity for states to assess the treaty, its progress, and make suggestions on how it can be improved. However, this is the third consecutive RevCon in a row – 16 years – where diplomats have failed to agree on a consensus. The next opportunity to do so will be in 2031.
Top UN officials expressed their concern at the lack of progress in a press conference to mark the end of the Review Conference, raising questions about the NPT’s future.
“The current international environment, which is marked by deep tensions and an elevated risk posed by nuclear weapons, demands very urgent action,” said Conference President, Ambassador Do Hung Viet. “I am concerned for the future health of the Treaty,” he added.
Izumi Nakamitsu, Under-Secretary-General and High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, called out Nuclear Weapons States on their obligations under the Treaty: “Non-proliferation and disarmament are two sides of the same coin. It is simply wrong for them to assume that non-proliferation obligations will be upheld without their own commitment to, and implementation of, disarmament obligations.”
CND General Secretary Sophie Bolt said:
“At such a dangerous time, it is outrageous that the nuclear-weapon states have yet again blocked any progress on disarmament. Britain and other Nuclear Weapons States are modernising and expanding their nuclear arsenals – at enormous expense – in direct violation of their disarmament obligations under the NPT. It also highlights the nuclear hypocrisy of the nuclear-weapon states. Countries like the US and Britain continue to justify their possession whilst threatening and bombing non-nuclear weapons states like Iran. Public protest and lobbying of our political leaders are absolutely vital if we are to shift this dangerous dynamic.”
- This article was originally published by CND on 27 May 2026.
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