RUSSIAN MINISTER WELCOMES STATEMENTS BY UNITED STATES IN FAVOUR OF MULTILATERAL APPROACHES TO INTERNATIONAL SECURITY AND DISARMAMENT

Sergey Lavrov, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, today told the Conference on Disarmament that Russia welcomes the statements made by the new United States Administration in favour of multilateral approaches to the maintenance of international security and disarmament. Russia was prepared, as was suggested by its American partners, to “reset” their relations. Conclusion of a new legally binding Russian-American treaty on strategic offensive arms could become a priority step in that direction.

Mr. Lavrov said the world had to acknowledge its inability to overcome a stalemate in the field of multilateral disarmament. The stalemate situation in the Conference’s activities that had continued for over 10 years clearly reflected an unfavourable state of affairs in the field of international security. Russia was aware of its special responsibility as a nuclear state and permanent member of the UN Security Council for nuclear disarmament and strengthening of the weapons of mass destruction non-proliferation regime. Russia had fully met its obligations under the START 1 and implementation of the Moscow Treaty SORT was well underway. It was now time to take new steps in this area aimed at making the world more secure.

Mr. Lavrov read out a statement by Dmitry A. Medvedev, President of the Russian Federation, on this issue, in which he said that on December 5 this year, the Treaty on the Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms (START 1) would expire. The importance of this instrument for ensuring international peace and stability could hardly be overestimated. Today, they were facing a pressing need to move further along the road of nuclear disarmament. In accordance with its obligations under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons Russia was fully committed to reaching the goal of a world free from these most deadly weapons.
The Russian President said a future agreement should be legally binding. It was of no less importance that the instrument should be forward-looking - and should limit not only warheads, but also strategic delivery vehicles, i.e. intercontinental ballistic missiles, submarine launched ballistic missiles and heavy bombers. Russia deemed it necessary to exclude possible deployment of strategic offensive arms outside national territories. Mr. Medvedev emphasized that Russia was open to dialogue and was prepared for negotiations with the new United States Administration.

Mr. Lavrov said today they were witnessing a growing number of international initiatives on nuclear disarmament. Russia appreciated the focus of these initiatives on solving global security issues on a multilateral basis and was willing to positively contribute to their consideration. However, progress towards "global zero" could only be achieved through strengthened strategic stability and strict adherence to the principle of equal security for all. In its turn this suggested the need to carry out a set of measures required for a sustainable and consistent disarmament process. Among those measures were further advancement of nuclear disarmament by all nuclear-weapon States, with their "gradual" engagement in efforts already being undertaken by Russia and the United States; to prevent weaponization of outer space; to prevent operational deployment of strategic offensive weapons equipped with conventional warheads, i.e. the building of the so-called "compensatory" potential; to ensure that States do not possess a "nuclear upload potential"; to prevent attempts aimed at using membership of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty to implement military nuclear programmes; and to ensure verifiable cessation of conventional capabilities' development coupled with efforts to resolve other international issues, including settlement of regional conflicts. He drew particular attention to the relationship between offensive and defensive weapons. Real progress in nuclear disarmament could not be achieved in a situation when unilateral efforts to develop strategic ABM systems undermined this relationship. This was fraught with erosion of strategic stability and disbalancing of the system of checks and balances that ensured global parity.

The Russian Foreign Minister said that Russia, acting in the spirit of strategic openness, proposed a constructive alternative to unilateral plans in this crucial area, i.e. to unite efforts of all States interested in counteracting potential missile threats. The package proposal with regard to developing cooperation remained on the negotiating table. Russia would develop and elaborate it.

Ensuring an effective and sustainable implementation of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, which was of pivotal importance for global security, and enhancement of its universality remained a priority. Strengthening of the international nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear arms limitation regime was inextricably linked to the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban,
Treaty. Russia had advocated its early entry into force. The moratorium on nuclear tests, with all its importance, could not serve as a substitute for legal obligations. Therefore Russia called upon all States whose accession was necessary for the Treaty's entry into force, to sign and ratify it as soon as possible.

Nuclear-weapon-free zones contributed to strengthening nuclear nonproliferation regime, achieving peace and security regionally and globally. The verification activities of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) needed to be made more effective. The Additional Protocol to the Safeguards Agreement, ratified by Russia in 2007, was an efficient tool of enhancing IAEA capacities in this field. Growing interest in peaceful nuclear energy was a trend of current economic development. Energy security and climate were necessarily linked to peaceful nuclear applications, which should be used more widely in full accordance with the NPT States parties' inalienable right to develop research, production and use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. This opened up new opportunities for international cooperation, primarily to ensure stable and secure supplies of nuclear fuel for countries developing their nuclear energy sector, subject to due compliance with the requirements of the nuclear non-proliferation regime. The ability to adequately and timely respond to the threat of nuclear terrorism was a prerequisite for ensuring security of every State and of the entire world community. The Russian-American Global Initiative to Combat Acts of Nuclear Terrorism put forward in 2006 was a major contribution to this cause.

Mr. Lavrov said Russia supported revitalization of multilateral diplomacy, primarily within the United Nations and the Conference on Disarmament. Preventing weaponization of outer space was of particular importance among disarmament issues. When Russia and China introduced a draft international Treaty on the Prevention of the Placement of Weapons in Outer Space at this Conference last February, they felt that it was easier to prevent weaponization of outer space than to get rid of new stockpiles of weapons afterwards. Russia and China would soon introduce a document summing up the outcome of the Conference debate and outlining their response to the comments received regarding the draft treaty. A year ago at the Conference Russia also introduced draft basic elements of an international legal agreement on the elimination of intermediate-range and shorter range (ground-launched) missiles. Russia reiterated its call for a detailed discussion of this initiative that had gained a great deal of support. Russia was also prepared to start negotiations on a treaty banning the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons purposes (FMCT), which would become an important milestone in the processes of nuclear disarmament and strengthening the nuclear non-proliferation regime.

In conclusion, Mr. Lavrov said in Russia’s view, the efforts made to harmonize the priority items on the agenda of the Conference on Disarmament in order to resume its substantive work were inextricably linked with the general search for ways to overcome the present-day crisis phenomena: be it in financial and economic, military and political, environmental or other areas. They could only solve the problems they were facing now through joint action, by restoring trust in global politics and making collective efforts meeting the interests of all States and the world community as a whole. Russia was open to a constructive dialogue and stood ready to work jointly with its partners. The right moment had come today, for the first time after the end of the Cold War, for making real progress in resuming the global disarmament process on a broad agenda. He was convinced that they should not miss this opportunity.

The next public plenary of the Conference will be held on Thursday, 12 March.


For use of information media; not an official record

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