CONFERENCE ON DISARMAMENT HEARS ADDRESS BY SECRETARY OF STATE AND MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF KAZAKHSTAN

Kanat Saudabayev, the Secretary of State and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan, addressed the Conference on Disarmament this morning, reaffirming Kazakhstan’s attachment to the Conference, outlining Kazakhstan’s priorities in disarmament and non-proliferation, and highlighting some of Kazakhstan’s major achievements in this area.

Mr. Saudabayev stressed at the outset that Kazakhstan, which had voluntarily renounced the world's fourth largest nuclear arsenal and shut down the largest nuclear test site at Semipalatinsk, had been and would continue to be a strong advocate of and active participant in the global non-proliferation process and efforts to reduce the nuclear threat. His country attached great importance to the Conference on Disarmament, which it considered as one of the most important mechanisms for strengthening international security. There was no doubt that the Conference had a great potential and was ready to make a major contribution to the disarmament process. In that regard, it was hoped that the participating States would have the political will to overcome their differences and to start the practical work of the Conference.

The past year, 2009, had been a momentous one for the disarmament community, Mr. Saudabayev noted. They were witnessing a change in the policy on non-proliferation and disarmament of the United States. President Obama's initiative to convene a global summit on nuclear security and his decision to give a new impulse to an early ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) had been positively received by the international community and had inspired new hope. The progress between Russia and the United States to conclude a new agreement to replace the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) was also of crucial importance. Today, it was very important to overcome the stagnation in the global disarmament process and to bring up to date the fundamental instrument in that area – the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). Big hopes were pinned on the upcoming NPT Review Conference to be held in May. The Secretary-General had proposed a five-point plan for disarmament; proposals by the United Kingdom, France, Norway and some other countries were also very interesting. The world was waiting for a big breakthrough and they had to meet those expectations. In that context, the Washington summit on nuclear security and the NPT Review Conference were the key events.

So far, unfortunately, they had not been able to achieve the disarmament goals and to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and the emergence of de facto nuclear weapon States. In that context, Mr. Saudabayev underscored the urgent need to develop clear mechanisms to put pressure on those nuclear weapon States that were operating outside the framework of the NPT and to prevent withdrawal from the Treaty. It was also necessary to ensure an unconditional compliance of its parties with their commitments, embodied in the unity of the three fundamental elements – non-proliferation; peaceful uses of nuclear energy; and disarmament. Kazakhstan hoped that the upcoming Review Conference would be able to break the stalemate in the efforts to address the issue of turning the NPT into a really effective instrument. For its part, Kazakhstan was working on a set of proposals which, in its view, were consonant with the aspirations of the international community as well as with the proposals that had already been made in the Conference.

Mr. Saudabayev also stressed that the entry into force of the CTBT was an important prerequisite of nuclear disarmament. Kazakhstan was actively cooperating with the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) on all aspects of its work and was making a significant contribution to strengthening the verification regime under the Treaty, including the establishment of an international monitoring system. Also, on Kazakhstan's initiative, in 2009 the General Assembly had declared 29 August – the date on which the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site had been officially shut down – the International Day against Nuclear Tests. At the first Review Meeting of the Parties to the Treaty on the Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone in Central Asia, held in October 2009, Kazakhstan had furthermore proposed the development of a regional action plan to enhance nuclear security, prevent non-proliferation and counter nuclear terrorism.

With regard to the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, the third pillar of the NPT, Mr. Saudabayev noted that Kazakhstan had become the world's biggest uranium miner and intended to actively develop cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. Along with that, work was under way to ensure nuclear material safety and strengthen the export control system. A Commission on National Policy of Weapons of Mass Destruction had been established in Kazakhstan, under the President, to review the current estate of affairs in that area and make recommendations for improving control systems. Indeed, Kazakhstan was a party to many international non-proliferation and export control regimes – including The Hague Code of Conduct – and it was working to join the Australian Group and the Missile Technology Control Regime. Although not officially a member, Kazakhstan adhered to the Guidelines of the Technology Annex of the Missile Technology Control Regime. Kazakhstan had furthermore supported the idea, proposed by the Nuclear Threat Initiative, to establish an international nuclear fuel bank, under International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) auspices, and had officially confirmed its readiness to host it on its territory and ensure the proper storage of nuclear fuel.

Turning to items on the Conference's agenda, the use of outer space for exclusively peaceful purposes was, in Kazakhstan's view, one of the most pressing items. There was a need to advance further the prevention of an arms race in outer space agenda by engaging other international bodies dealing with issues of space exploration. Kazakhstan also supported an early start of negotiations on a Treaty Banning the Production of Fissile Materials, which would make a critical contribution to preventing the spread of nuclear weapons. It was also time to proceed to the elaboration of an international, legally binding instrument on security assurances to non-nuclear weapon States provided by the nuclear powers.

Finally, Mr. Saudabayev highlighted that Kazakhstan had assumed the 2010 Chairmanship of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). In particular, the implementation of the Athens Ministerial Declaration of the OSCE on the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, which had already received positive feedback from the CTBTO and the IAEA, could become a major contribution to strengthening international peace and security. In addition, Kazakhstan hoped to address the issues of regional and global security through the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia, which had now become a real factor in international relations. In June, Turkey would host the third summit of that group. Kazakhstan was firmly convince that the use of interaction mechanisms, within that framework, could make a significant contribution to the resolution of the situation around the North Korean and Iranian nuclear programmes.

At the end of the meeting, Ambassador Mikhail Khvostov of Belarus, President of the Conference, announced that the next public plenary of the Conference would be held on Tuesday, 9 March at 10 a.m., when Beatrice Fihn of the Women's League for International Peace and Freedom would deliver a statement to the Conference on the occasion of International Women's Day. That was in accordance with a decision taken by the Conference on 2 March, on the understanding that that it did not constitute a precedent for the subsequent work of the Conference.

The issue of the greater involvement of civil society and non-governmental organization in the work of the Conference is one that has been increasingly advocated by numerous delegations in the Conference in recent years. In previous years, the statement by women’s non-governmental organizations on the occasion of International Women’s Day has been read out by the Conference President.


For use of the information media; not an official record

DC10/015E