BBC News
29 May 2010
Nearly 200 nations, signatories of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), have agreed to work towards a nuclear-weapons-free zone in the Middle East.
The members, meeting at the UN in New York, called for a conference in 2012 attended by Middle Eastern states – including Iran – to establish the zone.
The unanimously agreed document also said that Israel should sign the NPT.
US President Barack Obama backed the deal but said he was “strongly opposed” to Israel being singled out.
The US says the reference could jeopardise efforts to persuade the Israelis to attend the 2012 talks.
An Israel official later denounced the document as “hypocrisy”.
“Only Israel is mentioned, while the text is silent about other countries like India, Pakistan and North Korea, which have nuclear arms, or even more seriously, Iran, which is seeking to obtain them,” a senior government official told AFP news agency on condition of anonymity.
The article continues at BBC News.
H/T Astute Bloggers
