No Bones About It

Well, people, this is one straightforward treaty. It's certainly not written with any sort of entertainment quality in mind, and it's equally unlikely that it was ever intended to be read aloud to an audience beyond government officials.

If you weren't already familiar with the title, one of the dead giveaways that the PTBT is a treaty is its very clear format. Notice how it's divided into articles and then subdivided into numbered paragraphs. On one occasion, there is even a further subdivision  indicated by letters.

At first, this can seem intimidating and potentially difficult to read, mostly because it looks so official, but if you stick with it for a moment, you notice that those numbers and letters are meant to help clarify the document. Each section is a part of the treaty and contains its own point. This also helps when referencing the treaty later in casual conversation at a party or during the drafting of other, related treaties.

So let those letters and numbers be a guide because they're there to help us all follow along. It also couldn't hurt to know how to interpret a treaty in general. Treaties might be the work of government officials, but they deal with worldwide concerns and are written for and about people. If you know how to read them, then you know exactly what they do and whom they impact. Not a bad skill to have.

How It Breaks Down

Section 1 (Sentences 1-4): It's Party Time

The introduction identifies the authors of the treaty as the U.S., the U.K., and the USSR, collectively called the "Original Parties." It also describes their intentions to create the partial test ban treaty as part of a larger project for eventually ending the arms race and the development of nuclear weapons entirely. This is something they will do along with the United Nations.

Section 2 (Sentences 5-10): Rules of the Game

The first article describes, in detail, what the original parties and any other signing parties are agreeing to when joining the treaty. This agreement includes two major parts.

The first is that they promise not to conduct nuclear weapons testing or detonate any other type of nuclear explosive in the air, in outer space, or underwater. By signing, they also promise not to conduct nuclear weapons testing or detonate any other type of nuclear explosive in any area where radioactive fallout might reach territories beyond their borders.

In this section it's also stated that the rules set up by the PTBT will not be an obstacle for the creation and application of future treaties that might ban nuclear testing of all kinds—including those underground.

Article I ends with a final reminder that the signing nations can't dabble in nuclear testing conducted by other nations nor encourage it.

Section 3 (Sentences 11-16): More Rules

Article II gives the signing parties the opportunity to make changes to the treaty if they so desire. To do this, a party must submit an amendment, which will then be reviewed by all parties that are part of the treaty. If one-third or more of the parties want a conference to discuss the amendment, then they'll have a conference—complete with crustless white-bread finger sandwiches and gut-rotting coffee.

For the proposed amendment to pass, all of the original parties and a majority of the signing parties have to vote in favor of it. If it passes the vote, then the amendment will go into effect once the official documents have been processed.

Section 4 (Sentences 17-25): C'mon, Everybody

Article III is basically an open invitation to any nation that wants to jump on the PTBT bandwagon whenever it feels like. It also confirms the original parties—the U.S., the U.K., and the USSR—hold the most responsibility regarding the terms of the treaty.

It's in the second paragraph of this section that they are referred to and become the "Depositary Governments," or governing bodies through which nations that are not universally recognized can become part of the treaty.

The remainder of Article III describes the procedure for how the treaty goes into full effect with the processing of the official documents submitted by the original parties and how, from that point on, they are in charge of dealing with the organization and administration related to matters of the treaty, such as the accession of new parties, the scheduling of conferences, etc. Fun stuff. Lastly, it is confirmed that the treaty is written in accordance with the rules established by the Charter of the United Nations.

Section 5 (Sentences 26-29): What If We Change Our Minds?

Article IV very directly states that the PTBT doesn't have an expiration date, but in the event of a nuclear incident, all parties have the right and ability to leave the treaty with three-months' notice.

Section 6 (Sentences 30-34): The PTBT: Bilingual Edition

Article V functions as the conclusion to the treaty. It explains that original copies of the treaty will be housed in the archives of the American, British, and Soviet governments. Other parties will get their own certified copies of the document to enjoy.

The treaty concludes with the signature of the original parties' representatives: U.S. Secretary of State Dean Rusk, British Foreign Secretary Alec Douglas-Home, and Soviet Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko. The date of signing is August 5th, 1963.