VIENNA, Nov. 25 (Xinhua) -- Lebanon has ratified the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), which bans all nuclear explosions on the Earth, according to a press release Tuesday.

    Tibor Toth, executive secretary of the Vienna-based Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), welcomed Lebanon's ratification.

    Lebanon signed the pact on Sept. 21, 2005, and has shown its political support for the agreement in a variety of ways, including voting repeatedly in favor of a treaty resolution at the United Nations General Assembly's First Committee and through participation in CTBTO workshops.

    One hundred and eighty countries have already signed the treaty. To enter into force, however, the agreement must be signed and ratified by the 44 nuclear states, of which 35 have done so.

    A verification network is being built to monitor compliance with the treaty. A total of 337 facilities worldwide will monitor the environment for any sign of a nuclear explosion. Today, more than 230 facilities have been certified and incorporated into the network and can send data to the International Data Center at the CTBTO in Vienna.