Mémorandum de Budapest

Le mémorandum de Budapest est un accord, signé le 5 décembre 1994, par lequel l'Ukraine accepte de se défaire de l'énorme stock d'armes nucléaires dont elle a hérité à la dislocation de l'URSS et d'adhérer au Traité sur la non-prolifération des armes nucléaires. Les têtes nucléaires (1 900) sont envoyées en Russie pour démantèlement au cours des deux années suivantes.

En contrepartie, l'Ukraine obtient de la Russie, des États-Unis et du Royaume-Uni, rejoints plus tard par la Chine et la France, des garanties pour sa sécurité, son indépendance et son intégrité territoriale.
Lors de la crise de Crimée de 2014, l'Ukraine s'est référée à ce traité pour rappeler à la Russie qu'elle s'est engagée à respecter les frontières ukrainiennes, et aux autres signataires qu'ils en sont garants.

Selon le mémorandum, la Russie, les États-Unis et le Royaume-Uni s'engagent, en contre-partie de l'adhésion de l'Ukraine au Traité sur la non-prolifération des armes nucléaires et du transfert de son arsenal nucléaire à la Russie à :

1. Respecter l'indépendance et de la souveraineté ukrainienne dans ses frontières actuelles.
2. S'abstenir de toute menace ou usage de la force contre l'Ukraine.
3. S'abstenir d'utiliser la pression économique sur l'Ukraine en vue d'influencer sa politique.
4. Demander l'aval du Conseil de sécurité des Nations unies si des armes nucléaires sont utilisées contre l'Ukraine.
5. S'abstenir d'utiliser des armes nucléaires contre l'Ukraine.
6. Consulter les autres parties prenantes si des questions se posent au sujet de ces engagements.
   

Le texte dans sa totalité (en anglais) : CFR

Budapest Memorandums on Security Assurances, 1994

Published December 5, 1994

The Presidents of Ukraine, Russian Federation and United States of America, and the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom signed three memorandums (UN Document A/49/765) on December 5, 1994, with the accession of Ukraine to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. Through this agreement, these countries (later to include China and France in individual statements) gave national security assurances to Belarus, Kazakhstan and Ukraine. The Joint Declaration by the Russian Federation and the United States of America of December 4, 2009 confirmed their commitment.

Excerpt:

"Welcoming the accession of Ukraine to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons as a non-nuclear-weapon State,

Taking into account the commitment of Ukraine to eliminate all nuclear weapons from its territory within a specified period of time,

Noting the changes in the world-wide security situation, including the end of the cold war, which have brought about conditions for deep reductions in nuclear forces,

Confirm the following:

1. The Russian Federation, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America reaffirm their commitment to Ukraine, in accordance with the principles of the Final Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, to respect the independence and sovereignty and the existing borders of Ukraine;

2. The Russian Federation, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America reaffirm their obligation to refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or

political independence of Ukraine, and that none of their weapons will ever be used against Ukraine except in self-defence or otherwise in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations;

3. The Russian Federation, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America reaffirm their commitment to Ukraine, in accordance with the principles of the Final Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, to refrain from economic coercion designed to subordinate to their own interest the exercise by Ukraine of the rights inherent in its sovereignty and thus to secure advantages of any kind;

4. The Russian Federation, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America reaffirm their commitment to seek immediate United Nations Security Council action to provide assistance to Ukraine, as a non-nuclear-weapon State party to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, if Ukraine should become a victim of an act of aggression or an object of a threat of aggression in which nuclear

weapons are used;

5. The Russian Federation, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America reaffirm, in the case of Ukraine, their commitment not to use nuclear weapons against any non-nuclearweapon State party to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons,

except in the case of an attack on themselves, their territories or dependent territories, their armed forces, or their allies, by such a State in association or alliance with a nuclear-weapon State;

6. Ukraine, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America will consult in the event a situation arises that raises a question concerning these commitments.

This Memorandum will become applicable upon signature.

Signed in four copies having equal validity in the Ukrainian, English and Russian languages.

For Ukraine:

(Signed) Leonid D. KUCHMA

For the Russian Federation:

(Signed) Boris N. YELTSIN

For the United Kingdom of Great

Britain and Northern Ireland:

(Signed) John MAJOR

For the United States of America:

(Signed) William J. CLINTON