Leaders of France, Britain and Germany Friday called on the US Senate to ratify a global nuclear-test ban treaty.

　 French President Jacques Chirac, British Prime Minister Tony Blair and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder made the call in an opinion article on The New York Times.

　 The leaders said that failure to ratify the treaty will be a "failure in our struggle against proliferation. Disarmament negotiations would suffer."

　 "Rejection of the treaty in the Senate would remove the pressure from other states still hesitating about whether to ratify it," the article said.

　 The leaders also said that rejection of the treaty would also give great encouragement to proliferators and "expose a fundamental divergence" within the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

　 They also argue that the treaty is "effectively verifiable." "We need have no fear of the risk of cheating. We will not be relying on the good will of a rogue state to allow inspectors onto its territory."

　 "The United States and its allies have worked side by side for a Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty since the days of President Eisenhower. This goal is now within our grasp. Our security is involved, as well as America's," they noted.

　 "For the security of the world we will leave to our children, we urge the United States Senate to ratify the treaty," the article said. (Xinhua)