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e-4447 (Foreign affairs)
Original language of petition: English
Petition to the Government of Canada
- The nuclear threat is the highest it has ever been as the Doomsday Clock has been set at 90 seconds to midnight, due in part to the continuing war in Ukraine and the threats to use nuclear weapons;
- An intentional or accidental detonation of a single nuclear weapon would be disastrous, leading to the deaths of millions of people and contaminating the land, water and air with cancer-causing radiation;
- Nuclear weapons states are modernizing their arsenals, for example, the U.S. is spending $1.5 trillion over 30 years to rebuild its nuclear triad;
- The F-35 is part of this triad. Canada has just bought a fleet of F-35s, which are dual-capable fighter jets designed to carry the B61-12 thermonuclear bomb;
- The continued reliance on nuclear deterrence by nations like Canada through the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) allows the threat to persist;
- This nuclear peril to humanity necessitates the total elimination of nuclear weapons as required by the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW);
- The TPNW has been ratified by 68 countries and signed by 95 countries, but not yet by Canada; and
- Canada is in part accountable for creating and proliferating nuclear weapons, having sold uranium to the U.S. and United Kingdom.
Response by the Minister of Foreign Affairs
Signed by (Minister or Parliamentary Secretary): The Honourable Mélanie Joly
Canada is deeply concerned about the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons and has long been committed to achieving a world free from nuclear weapons.
Canada recognizes that the entry into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) reflects well-founded concerns about the slow pace of nuclear disarmament – concerns that Canada very much shares.
While not a party to the TPNW, Canada has common ground with Treaty states and shares the ultimate goal of a world free from nuclear weapons. For this reason, Canada remains steadfast in advancing implementation of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) across its three mutually re-enforcing pillars (non-proliferation, disarmament, peaceful uses of nuclear energy).
Canada is deeply disappointed that Russia blocked consensus at the August 2022 NPT Review Conference, and that it has failed to accept responsibility for the grave situation around Ukraine’s nuclear facilities. However, NPT states parties largely reaffirmed the validity and integrity of the Treaty.
In this new review cycle (culminating in the 11th NPT Review Conference in 2026), Canada will work tirelessly to strengthen and uphold the Treaty and advance its implementation. To this end, Canada has presented concrete ideas, in the form of a public working paper, to advance these objectives and foster more transparency, accountability and inclusion. Further, cross-regional groups to which Canada belongs – such as the Stockholm Initiative for Nuclear Disarmament and the Non-Proliferation and Disarmament Initiative – have also put forward pragmatic proposals on disarmament, risk reduction, transparency, and reporting, and other measures which garner widespread support amongst NPT State Parties.
Canada’s focus is on initiatives that bring together nuclear and non-nuclear armed states. These include notably: commencing long overdue negotiations on a Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty, advocating the entry-into-force of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty, building global capacity for disarmament verification, and promoting a more inclusive approach to disarmament and non-proliferation.
- Open for signature
- May 15, 2023, at 3:11 p.m. (EDT)
- Closed for signature
- June 14, 2023, at 3:11 p.m. (EDT)
- Presented to the House of Commons
-
Lindsay Mathyssen
(London—Fanshawe)
June 21, 2023 (Petition No. 441-01589) - Government response tabled
- September 18, 2023
