The Hague Code of Conduct

• India became the 138th country in the world to subscribe to an international code of conduct( or hague code of condut) against the proliferation of ballistic missiles.
• Under this India will also make a political commitment “to exercise maximum possible restraint in the development, testing and deployment of Ballistic Missiles capable of delivering weapons of mass destruction, including, where possible, to reduce national holdings of such missiles, in the interest of global and regional peace and security”.
• However, The government has also made it clear that this joining will not have any impact on the national security as well as country’s missile programmes.
• About Hague Code of Conduct, or HCoC
• The Hague Code of Conduct, or HCoC, against Ballistic Missile Proliferation is a voluntary, not legally binding, international confidence-building and transparency initiative aimed at preventing the proliferation of ballistic missiles that are capable of delivering weapons of mass destruction
• The code of conduct was formed in November 2002. China, Pakistan, Israel and Iran have not yet joined the voluntary regime.
• The HCOC does not ban ballistic missiles, but it does call for restraint in their production, testing, and export.
• The Code is meant to supplement the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) but its membership is not restricted.
• Given the similarities between the technologies used in ballistic missiles and civilian rockets, the Code also introduces transparency measures such as annual declarations and pre-launch notifications regarding ballistic missile and space launch programs.
• Austria is the administrative Central Contact of the Code, coordinating the information exchange under HCOC.

Analysis:

• The HCOC is a voluntary mechanism that has built a broad international predisposition against ballistic missile proliferation and promotes transparency and confidence building, including through the Subscribing States’ commitment to submit pre-launch notifications and annual declarations of their relevant policies
• The HCOC is aimed at bolstering efforts to curb ballistic missile proliferation worldwide and to further delegitimise such proliferation.
• As a signatory, India will have to provide pre-launch notifications on ballistic missiles, space launch vehicle launches and test flights. India will also need to submit an annual declaration of policy on satellite launch vehicles and ballistic missiles.
• India’s joining the Code signals its readiness to further strengthen the global non-proliferation regimes.

By: Vishal