CONFERENCE ON DISARMAMENT HEARS FROM ITS PRESIDENT, AND DELEGATIONS OF BANGLADESH AND CHILE

The Conference on Disarmament this morning held a plenary meeting in which it heard an update from the President of the Conference on the ongoing informal consultations, as well as statements by Bangladesh and Chile.

Ambassador Luis Enrique Chavez Basagoitia of Peru, President of the Conference, informed that no tangible result had been achieved in the informal consultations on a proposal of a programme of work. He announced that two plenary sessions would be held the following week, in which all interested delegations would have a chance to address items on the agenda.

Bangladesh stressed that the utmost priority of the Conference had to be nuclear disarmament, which should not be overshadowed by other items, as important as they were. The Conference could not be allowed to drift any longer.

Chile noted that agreeing on a programme of work was a daunting task, but efforts ought to continue.

The next plenary meeting of the Conference will take place on Tuesday, 14 June at 10 a.m.

Statements

Ambassador LUIS ENRIQUE CHAVEZ BASAGOITIA of Peru, President of the Conference, said that his efforts were focused on informal consultations with the view of agreeing on a proposal of a programme of work. While no tangible result had yet been achieved, there was room for optimism because there had been certain progress. Mr. Basagoitia would keep the Conference regularly informed of the progress of the informal consultations. There had been requests to use the plenary time as fruitfully as possible. Mr. Basagoitia informed that two plenary sessions would be convened on 14 and 16 June to allow delegations to address the first four items on the agenda, and then items 5, 6 and 7, respectively. If the two sessions did not suffice for all those wishing to take the floor to do so, there was still a possibility of convening a third plenary session, so that all willing delegations could make statements on any items of their choosing. Delegations were asked to take the floor in a concise fashion.

Bangladesh expressed concern that the Conference continued to remain in a stalemate. The lasting deadlock in the Conference and the standoff experienced in the United Nations Disarmament Commission were making the majority of the international community ever more frustrated. The highest priority on the Conference’s agenda had to be given to nuclear disarmament, which was a constitutional obligation for Bangladesh. Immediate commencement on negotiations on nuclear disarmament was the call of the day. Without the political will of different quarters, it was hard to restart the work of the Conference. When the voice of the silent majority continued to be ignored, they would rightfully proceed for a solution eventually. Bangladesh believed that other items were important elements on the agenda, but they should not be prioritized over nuclear disarmament. The Conference could not be allowed to drift any longer. Multilateralism had to be relied on to ensure a secured and prosperous world for the generations to come.

Chile said that, on the basis of the informal consultations, agreeing on the programme of work was clearly not an easy task, but efforts needed to continue.



For use of the information media; not an official record

DC16/023E