The Russian Duma has so far not ratified it, despite President Yeltsin's urging that it do so. In the meantime, the dangers of accidental nuclear war continue to mount. Article VI of the NPT does not explicitly state that signatory nuclear weapons states must actually achieve nuclear disarmament within a reasonable time frame. Moreover, the World Court's opinion is in accord with the views of the vast majority of NPT signatories. But Not Disarmament Apart from Article VI of the NPT, there is no clear pattern towards disarmament among these treaties.
Some treaties legitimize nuclear arsenals and are significant roadblocks to nuclear disarmament.
Foremost among these are NATO and the US-Japan Security Treaty. The sum total of these treaties, when coupled with the actual behavior of nuclear weapons states, indicates that treaties are not going to be enough to create complete and enduring nuclear disarmament. This is because the nuclear weapon states have come to see their security, their power, and their position in the world as being linked to the possession and deployment of nuclear weapons. Moreover, the United States, Russia, Britain, and France have not renounced first-use of nuclear weapons. In fact, the US and Russia have explicitly maintained that such use is their prerogative.