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Russia calls all countries to join nuclear NPT

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-07-01 22:09

MOSCOW  -- Russia on Tuesday called all countries to join the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and ensure the "full-scale and effective operation" of the international regime.

"Russia has systematically complied with its NPT liabilities and confirmed its strong and invariable support for that treaty," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

"We are for making the NPT universal, and we are calling on all countries that have not done this year, to join in," it said.

So far, some 190 countries have joined the treaty, which was first inked in 1968 and became effective in 1970.

"We are certain that the newly-emerged challenges to the nuclear non-proliferation regimen can and must be eliminated first and foremost with reliance on the NPT," the statement said.