CONFERENCE ON DISARMAMENT BIDS FAREWELL TO REPRESENTATIVES OF SLOVAKIA AND OF THE NETHERLANDS

The Conference on Disarmament this morning held its last plenary under the Slovak Presidency and bid farewell to Ambassador Fedor Rosocha of Slovakia, Permanent Representative of Slovakia to the United Nations Office at Geneva and President of the Conference on Disarmament, and to Henk Cor van der Kwast,
Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva and Disarmament Ambassador at large.

In his last address to the plenary as the President of the Conference, Mr. Rosocha said that during the Slovak Presidency, the Conference had focused on two complementary efforts: to explore options to help the Conference reach consensus on its programme of work, and to sustain the Working Group on the way ahead. One month was not a sufficient period of time for a Presidency to plan and carry out all steps necessary to break the existing deadlock in the Conference. Despite the efforts and numerous consultations on various issues over the past three weeks, there was no emerging consensus on a possible programme of work which would include a negotiating mandate.

Mr. Rosocha expressed satisfaction that the Conference had found a common understanding and that the Working Group on the way ahead had finally started with its scheduled meetings, according to the agreed timetable, which would allow for the identification of the common ground for the future work. Re-starting negotiations in the Council was crucial for addressing the current global security needs and all carried the responsibility to make it happen.

Henk Cor van der Kwast, Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva and Disarmament Ambassador at large, then took the floor in his last address the Conference, saying that one thing was clear: progress on confidence building and disarmament was crucial in promoting international peace and security. In these troubled times, efforts to reduce tensions must be doubled. Security was of the essence as the proliferation of nuclear weapons and of missile technology were worrying. Multilateralism was important to seek ways to deal with this, including through strengthening international agreements. The Conference on Disarmament was the right forum to elaborate all those issues, even if some were claiming that now was not the right time for such efforts.

Ambassador van der Kwast noted that increasingly, there were more and more disarmament activities outside of the Conference, and stressed the need to ensure that the Conference could fulfil its core mandate, that of negotiating nuclear disarmament treaties. The Conference was the single negotiating body for disarmament; all negotiations started by talks and in the absence of negotiations, a lot of work could be done by setting up structured and well organized discussions and working out those discussions. Progress was possible, there was a wealth of knowledge in this body and there was much to be shared.

The issue of the Fissile Material Cutoff Treaty was long overdue, Mr. van der Kwast noted and said that the high-level group set up by the General Assembly would report to the Conference on Disarmament in two years’ time. The Netherlands was in favour of further discussions on the issue in the Conference; should however the Conference, for whatever reason, be incapable to deal with it, the matter might be worked out in other fora which would further contribute to the declining relevance of the Conference. Power came with responsibility and it was a common responsibility of all to make this body work, not just the Presidency. Political will was required to get to the start and conclusion of negotiations and the States possessing nuclear weapons should lead the way in this body that they claimed was the single multilateral body for disarmament and the single negotiating forum.

Mr. van der Kwast said that with the current negotiations in New York on the treaty banning nuclear weapons, many States were sending a signal that the current stalemate in disarmament was unacceptable for a large group of countries and in view of their nuclear arsenal, the United States and Russia had a special responsibility in moving things forward. If States did not see any value in this body, they should leave it rather than paralyze it. The Conference should continue to work on its enlargement and it was remarkable that there were still States which wished to become members; the States which had long been observers should be taken seriously in their request for a membership, said Mr. van der Kwast and stressed that enlargement should not be taken hostage.

In the ensuing discussion, the delegations commended the efforts of the Slovak Presidency during which the Conference had moved forward towards substantive discussions on the way ahead and wished Ambassador Rosocha all the best in his next posting.

Speakers thanked the outgoing Ambassador van der Kwast of the Netherlands who had made significant contributions to the work of the Conference in the four years he had been representing his country, and who had proven many times that doing nothing was not an option despite the adverse circumstances. Delegates appreciated his tireless efforts on reforming the Conference and broadening its membership, the leadership in putting the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons process back on track, and his contribution to the negotiations on the cluster munitions treaty and the anti-personnel mine ban convention.

Speaking were United Kingdom, China, Guatemala on behalf of the Observer States, Canada, Germany, Republic of Korea, Italy, Poland, Spain and India.

Ambassador Rosocha, the President of the Conference, in concluding remarks, said that since taking his post as the Permanent Representative of Slovakia to the United Nations Office at Geneva, many efforts had been invested by Member States to revitalize the work of the Conference, but the deadlock had continued, even if the world could not afford a deadlock. The Conference must not allow itself to be pushed aside, but also it must not live in the past - it must look into the future which was framed by the numerous calls by the United Nations, the international community and the people. The Conference must revive its potential to fulfil those expectations and must create the conditions for it to start its substantive work and negotiations.

The Conference approved a request by Luxembourg to participate in the work of the Conference during its 2017 session as an observer.

The next public plenary meeting of the Conference on Disarmament will take place on Tuesday, 27 June, at 10 a.m. under the Presidency of South Africa.



For use of the information media; not an official record

DC17/024E