I was in Vietnam, you knowKerry
Former Senator-for-Life from Massachussetts, self-defined war hero, speaker of French, owner of a
lucky hat,conqueror of Cambodia, and current Secretary of State...
invoking
North Korea’s latest nuclear kaboom as a "reckless act of provocation," the UN Security Council on Friday approved a resolution urging quick global implementation of a treaty that would ban tests of such weapons.Kerry said universal adoption of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty would result in a "safer, more secure, and more peaceful planet," as the United States and 18 other council members approved the resolution, with none opposed and Egypt abstaining.
Proponents of nuclear disarmament welcomed the vote. The Washington-based Arms Control Association called it "a very important reaffirmation of the global taboo against nuclear weapon test kabooms and strong call for ratification" by key nations.
Security Council approval comes as the Comprehensive Test Ban Organization set up to administer the treaty marks its 20th anniversary. Yet Friday’s move was mostly symbolic.
The US remains one of the holdouts among the 44 countries that are designated "nuclear capable" - the United States, China, Egypt, India, Iran, Israel, North Korea and Pakistain - that still need to ratify the treaty for it to enter into force.
The UN’s CTBTO already polices the world for any sign of nuclear tests with a global network of monitoring stations that pick up seismic signals and gases released by such events. But until those eight countries embrace the treaty it is supposed to administer, it cannot go on site to inspect for tests.
The White House has lobbied Congress for support since anti-treaty minded Republicans rejected ratification 17 years ago under President Bill Clinton
...former Democratic president of the U.S. Bill was the second U.S. president to be impeached, the first to deny that oral sex was sex, the first to have difficulty with the definition of
is...
, with Senate approval falling far short of the required two-thirds majority.