CONFERENCE ON DISARMAMENT 2010 SESSION

The Conference on Disarmament, the world's sole multilateral forum for disarmament negotiations, will hold the first public plenary of its 2010 session on Tuesday, 19 January at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.

The session will open under the presidency of Ambassador Abdul Hannan of Bangladesh. The presidency of the Conference rotates among its Member States according to the English alphabetical order, with each President holding office for four working weeks. Belarus, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria and Cameroon will also hold the presidency during 2010. The three parts of the 2010 session of the Conference will be held from 18 January to 26 March for the first part; 31 May to 16 July for the second part; and 9 August to 24 September for the third part.

In accordance with its rules of procedure, at its opening meeting, the Conference "shall adopt its agenda for the year at the beginning of the session. In doing so, the Conference shall take into account the recommendations made to it by the United Nations General Assembly, the proposals by its Members, and decisions of the Conference."

The major achievement of the Conference in 2009 was the adoption by consensus on 29 May of decision CD/1864 setting out a programme of work for the Conference in 2009, breaking the more than decade-long stalemate on that issue. However, in the remaining weeks of 2009 consensus among members proved elusive on a decision to implement the work programme.

By decision CD/1864, on the establishment of a Programme of Work for the 2009 session, the Conference on Disarmament agreed to establish several Working Groups. Under agenda item 1, cessation of the nuclear arms race and nuclear disarmament, it was to establish a Working Group to exchange views and information on practical steps for progressive and systematic efforts to reduce nuclear weapons with the ultimate goal of their elimination, including on approaches toward potential future work of multilateral character. A second Working Group under that agenda item was tasked with negotiating a treaty banning the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices, on the basis of the document CD/1299 of 24 March 1995 and the mandate contained therein (also known as the Shannon Mandate). It also agreed to establish Working Groups on prevention of an arms race in outer space and on negative security assurances. The Conference was also to appoint Special Coordinators on the other agenda items, including weapons of mass destruction and new systems of such weapons; radiological weapons; comprehensive programme of disarmament; and transparency in armaments, to seek the views of its members on the most appropriate way to deal with those issues.

Subsequently, a number of proposals for implementing decisions were elaborated, culminating in CD/1870/Rev.2, which combined the previous proposals on the appointment of the Working Group Chairs and the Special Coordinators (CD/1867) and the revised calendar of activities (CD/1866/Rev. 1). However, consensus on these proposals could not be reached.

Summing up the situation at the closing meeting of the 2009 session, then-Conference President Ambassador Christian Strohal of Austria had voiced the hope – subsequently echoed by many Conference members – that they should build on the success and progress they had achieved with that consensus in 2010. Many also stressed the need to make a quick start on substantive work in 2010.

Member States of the Conference

The 65 members of the Conference are Algeria, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cameroon, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Cuba, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ecuador, Egypt, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Malaysia, Mexico, Mongolia, Morocco, Myanmar, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Peru, Poland, Republic of Korea, Romania, Russian Federation, Senegal. Slovakia, Spain, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States, Venezuela, Viet Nam and Zimbabwe.


For use of the information media; not an official record

DC10/001E