Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material
# Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material

The Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material was adopted on 26 October 1979 in Vienna, Austria. The initial signing ceremony took place in Vienna and at New York on 3 March 1980, and the convention entered into force on 8 February 1987. The convention is deposited with the International Atomic Energy Agency. In July 2005 a diplomatic conference was convened to amend the convention and strengthen its provisions, as a result of which it was renamed the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material and Nuclear Facilities.

As of October 2018, there are 157 state parties to the convention plus the European Atomic Energy Community.

Upon accession, 38 countries declared themself as not bound by the provisions of Article 17 paragraph 2 and did not accept the competence of the International Court of Justice in settlement of the disputes. Five countries withdrew these objections thereafter.

List of countries that upon ratification declared that they do not consider themselves bound by dispute settlement procedures provided for in Article 17 paragraph 2 :

| Country name | Accession date | Withdrawal date |
| - | - | - |
| Algeria | 30 April 2003 | - |
| Argentina | 6 April 1989 | - |
| Azerbaijan | 19 January 2004 | - |
| Bahamas | 21 May 2008 | - |
| Bahrain | 10 May 2010 | - |
| Belarus | 9 September 1993 | - |
| Bulgaria | 10 April 1984 | 11 May 1994 |
| China | 10 January 1989 | - |
| Cuba | 26 September 1997 | - |
| Cyprus | 23 July 1998 | - |
| El Salvador | 15 December 2006 | - |
| France | 6 September 1991 | - |
| Guatemala | 23 April 1985 | - |
| Hungary | 4 May 1984 | 30 November 1989 |
| India | 12 March 2002 | - |
| Indonesia | 5 November 1986 | - |
| Israel | 22 January 2002 | - |
| Jordan | 7 September 2009 | - |
| Korea | 7 April 1982 | - |
| Kuwait | 23 April 2004 | - |
| Lao | 29 September 2010 | - |
| Mongolia | 28 May 1986 | 18 June 1990 |
| Mozambique | 3 March 2003 | - |
| Myanmar | 6 December 2016 | - |
| Oman | 11 June 2003 | - |
| Pakistan | 12 September 2000 | - |
| Peru | 11 January 1995 | - |
| Poland | 5 October 1983 | 18 June 1997 |
| Qatar | 9 March 2004 | - |
| Romania | 23 November 1993 | - |
| Russia | 25 May 1983 | 22 July 2007 |
| Saint Lucia | 14 September 2012 | - |
| Saudi Arabia | 7 January 2009 | - |
| Singapore | 22 September 2014 | - |
| South Africa | 17 September 2007 | - |
| Spain | 6 September 1991 | - |
| Turkey | 27 February 1985 | - |
| Viet Nam | 4 October 2012 | – |

The United States Department of State says that:

   The Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material provides for certain levels of physical protection during international transport of nuclear material. It also establishes a general framework for cooperation among states in the protection, recovery, and return of stolen nuclear material. Further, the Convention lists certain serious offenses involving nuclear material which state parties are to make punishable and for which offenders shall be subject to a system of extradition or submission for prosecution.
