Nuke-free pact set for summit

Nuke-free pact set for summit

BANGKOK (AFP): The seven ASEAN nations will sign a treaty here
next month declaring the region a nuclear free zone but still
allow the five nuclear powers free passage, a foreign ministry
official said yesterday.

The signing of the Nuclear Weapons Free Zone accord is to be
the highlight of the Dec. 14-15 summit of the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations, he said.

The protocol, finalized at the ASEAN senior officials meeting
last weekend in Jakarta, bans the production, processing and
testing of nuclear weapons. But it allows the development of
nuclear technology for peaceful use.

The Jakarta meeting also saw the group overcome the last
obstacle to the treaty when the officials agreed to let aircraft
and ships carrying nuclear weapons pass through the region.