CONFERENCE ON DISARMAMENT CONTINUES HIGH-LEVEL SEGMENT, HEARS FROM TEN DIGNITARIES
The Conference on Disarmament this morning continued its high-level segment, hearing from dignitaries from Croatia, Russia, United Kingdom, Greece, Japan, Romania, Estonia, Iran, Malaysia and Indonesia.
Speakers said the Non-Proliferation Treaty had stood the test of time remarkably well, and its achievements were encouraging. They called for further efforts to overcome the deadlock in the Conference on Disarmament, with some officials advocating for starting negotiations on a fissile material cut-off treaty or enlarging membership. Means of fostering responsible behaviour in outer space, the need to address emerging technologies and the use of chemical weapons were also discussed.
Addressing the Conference this morning were Gordan Grliæ Radman, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of Croatia; Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia; Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; Nikos Dendias, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece; Asako Omi, Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan; Cornel Feruþã, State Secretary for Global Affairs and Diplomatic Strategies, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Romania; Erki Kodar, Undersecretary for Legal and Consular Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Estonia; Mohsen Baharvand, Deputy Foreign Minister for International and Legal Affairs of Iran; Ahmad Faisal Bin Muhamad, Permanent Representative of Malaysia to the United Nations Office at Geneva; and Hasan Kleib, Permanent Representative of Indonesia to the United Nations Office at Geneva.
The United States spoke in the right of reply.
The Conference will continue its high-level segment at 9.45 a.m. tomorrow, 26 February.
Statements
GORDAN GRLIĆ RADMAN, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of Croatia, said the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons continued to be the only comprehensive instrument aimed at achieving nuclear disarmament while preserving the right of States to use civil nuclear energy. Urging its universalization, he said Croatia condemned its à la carte implementation. The Minister said that Croatia called for de-escalation and restraint, in particular in Central and South Asia, the Korean Peninsula and the Middle East.
The trend of some States announcing they would relax restrictions on the use of anti-personnel landmines was worrying; all States should align with and implement without delay the provisions of the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention. Croatia advocated for the empowerment of women, who played an important role in security and disarmament, in particular in post-war reconstruction, confidence-building and reconciliation. Expressing deep regret that a Member State of the European Union and the United Nations had been denied the observer status, Mr. Grliæ Radman stated that, as itself an observer State, Croatia was ready to become a member of the Conference.
SERGEY LAVROV, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia, noted a return of dangerous destructive trends caused by the revival of foreign policy egocentrism by one State and said that last year, the United States had destroyed the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty with its withdrawal. It was not too late to prevent the placement of weapons in outer space, he said and recalled that together with China, Russia had already introduced a draft treaty in the Conference on Disarmament. The Minister expressed concern about the lack of certainty related to the fate of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, noting that Russia’s President had proposed its extension without any preconditions. In the current situation, it was important that the outcome of the 2020 Review Conference of the Non-Proliferation Treaty was an unconditional strengthening of the non-proliferation regime, regardless of the adoption of an outcome document.
The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action with Iran had been an effective example of overcoming a crisis and preventing conflict. This was a unique achievement, which was being destroyed by the failure of the United States to uphold its obligations under Article VII of the United Nations Charter and the inability of Europeans, despite their efforts, to uphold their part of the deal. Iran had had to react, but it had done so with lawful means provided for by the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. The Joint Commission of this agreement was meeting in Vienna the following day, which offered an opportunity to prevent escalation.
Calling on his American colleagues to return to intergovernmental international dialogue within the framework of the United Nations Charter, Mr. Lavrov noted the recent positive developments in the Conference and urged everyone to take a responsible approach on the Russian initiative on an international convention on international chemical and biological terrorism.
LORD AHMAD OF WIMBLEDON, Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, said the Non-Proliferation Treaty’s achievements over its first half-century were encouraging, but it was clear that there was a lot more to do. States such as Iran and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea continued to pose proliferation concerns and despite the dismantlement of huge arsenals of warheads, some States felt the pace of nuclear disarmament was still slower than many would like. The United Kingdom had reduced its warhead stockpile to the minimum level, consistent with the maintenance of a credible deterrent. It had also offered the assurance that it would not use, or threaten to use, nuclear weapons against any non-nuclear weapon State party to the Non-Proliferation Treaty that was in compliance with its non-proliferation obligations.
Noting that the Conference had been blocked for too long, Lord Ahmad said it had to define responsible behaviours in space, to avoid miscalculations and mitigate threats. It must also work to get rid of chemical weapons once and for all. In recent years, the prohibition against the use of chemical weapons had been challenged. In that context, it was important to continue upholding and strengthening conventions and instruments to ensure they remained both relevant and effective in the face of new threats.
NIKOS DENDIAS, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece, said that today more than ever the preservation and universalization of the Non-Proliferation Treaty and its three pillars were at the core of global non-proliferation and disarmament architecture. Addressing the triptych of the Treaty with a balanced approach must be at the centre of deliberations at the 2020 Review Conference. The Conference must once again stand up to its obligations to the international community. There were no “quick fixes” and Greece remained steadfast in the belief that the way forward towards complete and verifiable nuclear disarmament was through a step-by-step approach.
A fissile material cut-off treaty would be an appropriate first step, and the universalization of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty would contribute to international peace and security. On the enlargement of the Conference’s membership, Mr. Dendias underscored that Greece was the longest-standing observer that had formally expressed its interest to join this body. From its perspective, there was no legitimate reason or moral justification to prolong this limbo. It was outdated to hold enlargement hostage to bilateral issues that had no relevance to the Conference’s subject matter, he concluded.
ASAKO OMI, Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, said that as the only country to have suffered atomic bombings during a war, Japan was fully aware of the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of the use of these weapons. Building on previous negotiations, the Conference needed to prioritize substantive discussions on agenda items based on their degree of maturity. Therefore, it should immediately commence negotiations on a fissile material cut-off treaty and discuss emerging technologies in addition to the traditional agenda.
Japan continued to support the United States - Democratic People’s Republic of Korea process and reaffirmed its strong commitment to achieving the complete, verifiable, and irreversible dismantlement of Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles of all ranges in accordance with relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions. In conclusion, the Vice-Minister stressed that nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation education contributed to realizing a world without nuclear weapons, as it fostered a better understanding of their humanitarian consequences and the related risks.
CORNEL FERUŢĂ, State Secretary for Global Affairs and Diplomatic Strategies, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Romania, said the Conference had the potential to become once again a major source for finding solutions to the challenges and concerns faced by the international community. It was important to achieve a convergence of opinions, reach tangible results and revive the Conference. The Non-Proliferation Treaty had stood the test of time remarkably well, having had an almost unparalleled contribution to making the world safer.
That was why all should strive to further strengthen its framework and contribute with practical, effective and future-oriented actions to the 2020 Review Conference. The Non-Proliferation Treaty offered the best route for nuclear disarmament and the outcome of the 2020 Review would depend on collective efforts to strengthen its authority. Mr. Feruþã reiterated Romania’s position that the commencement of the fissile material cut-off treaty negotiations was the next logical step for advancing nuclear disarmament and preventing proliferation. Romania was also convinced that the entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty would be a step towards a safer and peaceful world.
ERKI KODAR, Undersecretary for Legal and Consular Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Estonia, said that as an elected member of the United Nations Security Council, Estonia was standing for international law and the application of common rules and agreements, countering aggression and promoting human rights. The repeated use of chemical weapons in recent years had gravely undermined the universal prohibition against their use. Estonia had full confidence in the Technical Secretariat of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and the independent, impartial and professional work of its investigative missions.
Citing the entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty as a challenge, Mr. Kodar urged all States, particularly Annex II countries, to sign and ratify the Treaty without further delay. Estonia had been a leading advocate for building a strategic framework for conflict prevention and stability in cyberspace and had participated in the work of the United Nations Group of Governmental Experts in that context. On outer space, while not excluding the possibility of negotiating a legally binding norm, Estonia believed that first, nations should agree on voluntary principles of responsible behaviour.
MOHSEN BAHARVAND, Deputy Foreign Minister for International and Legal Affairs of Iran, said that, while Iran attached significant importance to the effective functioning of the Conference, it did not see any linkage between the stalemate and its method of work. The underlying cause of the Conference’s long and acute stalemate was the lack of political will, Mr. Baharvand stressed. The recent deployment of a new, low-yield nuclear warhead by the United States had increased the role of nuclear weapons in its military doctrine, in violation of its commitments under the Non-Proliferation Treaty. It had also made the use of nuclear weapons as possible as the use of conventional weapons and had made nuclear war more likely.
The withdrawal of the United States from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action in material breach of its commitments and in stark violation of the Security Council resolution represented a vicious attack against multilateralism, Mr. Barharvand added. It was bizarre that at the same time the United States criticized Iran for non-compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. Iran continued its cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency as well as its voluntary implementation of the Additional Protocol, and transparency was the hallmark of the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear programme. In conclusion, Mr. Barharvand noted that Iran was not responsible for the situation in Yemen and the related civilian deaths, unlike Saudi Arabia.
AHMAD FAISAL BIN MUHAMAD, Permanent Representative of Malaysia to the United Nations Office at Geneva, noting that in recent decades the Conference had been criticized and dismissed, said that this year it had started with good momentum under the Presidency of Algeria in collaboration with other members of the P6. It had been very close to adopting the “package” as a programme of work, which Malaysia viewed as “comprehensive and elegant”.
For the Conference to move forward, all Member States should demonstrate strong political will, combined with a readiness to compromise and exercise utmost flexibility, Mr. Faisal said, assuring that his delegation stood ready to do so. In preparation of the upcoming Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference in April 2020, States parties to that Treaty must maintain the commitment to its success. Malaysia would continue to work closely with the States parties to the Non-Proliferation Treaty and other stakeholders to create the needed momentum.
HASAN KLEIB, Permanent Representative of Indonesia to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said that after two-and-a-half decades of gridlock, the question of the relevance of the Conference had been inevitably raised. In that context, there was a need to reinforce the global nuclear disarmament architecture. Nuclear disarmament was and should be, the highest priority, and the Conference should pursue negotiations on a phased programme for the complete elimination of nuclear weapons with a specified timeframe.
Negative security assurances were an important building block of the multilateral process in reducing nuclear weapons towards a “global zero”, Mr. Kleib added. Indonesia was highly committed to advancing a balanced fissile material cut-off treaty, which addressed the concerns of nuclear-weapon State as well as non-nuclear weapon State. Such a treaty should be non-discriminatory, multilateral and effectively verifiable, in accordance with the mandate contained in CD/1299. Furthermore, Indonesia was urging the Members of the Conference to address the potential threats of weaponized outer space and cyberspace.
For use of the information media; not an official record
DC20.011E