STORY: Russia's State Duma approves bill revoking ratification of nuclear test ban treaty in first reading
DATELINE: Oct. 18, 2023
LENGTH: 00:01:26
LOCATION: Moscow
CATEGORY: POLITICS

SHOTLIST:
1. various of State Duma sessions (source: Duma telegram)

STORYLINE:

Russia's lower house of parliament, or State Duma, approved a bill revoking the ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) in the first reading, it said in a statement Tuesday.
   
Russian lawmakers unanimously approved the bill on the de-ratification of the treaty, and Chairman of the State Duma Vyacheslav Volodin earlier noted that the bill could be considered in the final reading on Oct. 19.
   
"For 23 years we have been waiting for the United States of America to ratify the treaty. But Washington used its double standards and irresponsible approach towards global security issues and still has not done that," Volodin said in a Telegram post.
   
He said that Washington must finally understand that its hegemony will not lead to anything good, and come to terms with the fact that "there is a need for dialogue on the principles of mutual respect," and non-interference in the affairs of sovereign states.
   
The Kremlin had stated earlier that Russia's potential withdrawal from the CTBT will not imply that the country will restore nuclear tests.
   
The CTBT is a multilateral agreement that bans all nuclear explosion tests conducted for peaceful or military purposes. The treaty was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1996, signed by 187 nations, and ratified by 178 as of September 2023.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Moscow.
(XHTV)