Friday, May 13 2005 12:09 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New York: India, Pakistan and Israel can join the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) either as non-nuclear States or the agreement could be amended to give them status of nuclear weapons States but there is no forward movement on the options, an official heading the NPT review conference has said.

Asked about efforts being made to bring the three countries into the fold of the Treaty, President of the conference conducting a five-year review of the Treaty Sergio de Queiroz Duarte (Brazil) said there are only two ways through which they can join.

He said they could be taken in either as non-nuclear States or the Treaty should be amended to give them status of nuclear weapons States, adding he sees no movement on either of the two options.

The NPT recognises only the US, Britain, Russia, France and China as nuclear weapon States who can keep atomic weapons but move towards eliminating them by progressively reducing the number of warheads. But there has been little movement towards their elimination by the Nuclear weapons States.

India had not joined the Treaty as it considered the document discriminatory because it does not call for elimination of the arsenals of nuclear weapon States in a time-bound framework and bars the rest from acquiring them.

Pakistan did not join, saying it would do so only if India joins it.

North Korea has withdrawn from the NPT but the seat with its nameplate is reserved at the conference conducting five-yearly review of the treaty in the hope that it might change its mind and return into its fold.

Queiroz Duarte agreed that the status of North Korea is being kept vague.

"North Korea had declared it has left the treaty. The wide majority would argue that it is not a party (to the Treaty). Some apparently believed, however, that if the question of the membership of North Korea is left vague, there is a chance it would come back into the fold," he said.

He said the parties wanted to talk about the article, which allows a member to withdraw from the Treaty but did not give his assessment of the likely course the discussions.

"Politically there should be an open door in case they should decide to come back," he added.