UN SECRETARY-GENERAL RENEWS CALL TO CONFERENCE ON DISARMAMENT TO ADOPT SPIRIT OF COMPROMISE AND SEIZE HISTORIC OPPORTUNITY TO END IMPASSE
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today addressed the opening plenary of the 2008 session of the Conference on Disarmament and renewed his call for the Conference to move forward in a spirit of compromise to seize historic opportunity and end the impasse in its work.
This marked the first time that a United Nations Secretary-General has addressed the yearly opening of the Conference on Disarmament.
Secretary-General Ban observed that the international community valued the Conference on Disarmament, as the world’s single multilateral disarmament negotiating forum – but they needed progress. Even with widespread agreement on the gravity of threats to international peace and security, the Conference still had not been able to find common cause to address them. He was deeply troubled by this impasse over priorities. Last year, the Conference had been poised to resume its role as the world’s pre-eminent disarmament negotiating body. The six Presidents for 2007 had crafted a proposal for negotiations to begin on a treaty to ban the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices – and to focus on other core issues. When the Conference had been on the verge of reaching a decision on that draft presidential decision last June, he had called on them to move forward in a spirit of compromise to seize that historic opportunity. They had not. He was here now to personally renew that call.
To get back on the path to success, the Conference had to rekindle the ambition and sense of common purpose that produced its past accomplishments, including the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the Chemical Weapons Convention and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, the Secretary-General said. Those milestone pacts showed the potential of the Conference. To harness that now, they needed political vision. The fate of the draft presidential decision would depend greatly on forward-thinking leadership and political support. In that process, the Conference on Disarmament would continue to have his full support for the start of negotiations on a fissile material treaty. Those talks would advance nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation objectives – and they were needed now. In making that call, he was not at all discounting the importance of preventing an arms race in outer space, or negative security assurances, or nuclear disarmament per se. However, the Conference had to decide how to organize its treatment of those issues without holding any of them hostage to the others.
In brief opening remarks, Ambassador Samir Labidi of Tunisia, President of the Conference, underscored that the Secretary-General's presence at the opening of the Conference's session added a new dimension to their efforts aimed at achieving substantive results in the Conference this year.
The plenary of the Conference was also addressed by the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Tunisia, as well as general statements from the Russian Federation, on behalf of the Eastern European Group, Sri Lanka, on behalf of the Group of 21, Italy on behalf of the Western Group, and China.
Abdelwaheb Abdallah, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Tunisia, paid tribute to the Secretary-General for his presence at this important session and his willingness to enhance the efficiency of the Conference on Disarmament. Tunisia reiterated its determination to work in a spirit of constructive dialogue with the objective to reach consensual solutions. The Tunisian approach of international relations was based on a tight interdependence between security, peace and development. The relationship between disarmament and development, which was among the challenges facing the international community in order to contain poverty and focus efforts towards the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals, was also stressed.
In general statements, the Russian Federation (on behalf of the Eastern European Group), Sri Lanka (on behalf of the Group of 21), Italy (on behalf of the Western Group), and China, all underscored that the presence of the Secretary-General at the Conference's opening was a manifestation of his high esteem for their forum, and agreed that his presence would inject a positive impetus for a return to substantive work in the Conference.
The next plenary of the Conference will be held at 10 a.m. on Friday, 25 January.
Opening Statements
BAN KI-MOON, Secretary-General of the United Nations, said he welcomed this opportunity to address the opening of the Conference on Disarmament’s 2008 session. He was here to spotlight the priorities of disarmament and non-proliferation – and to underscore his conviction that this institution could advance both goals. The international community valued the Conference on Disarmament, as the world’s single multilateral disarmament negotiating forum – but they needed progress. They needed progress because concerted disarmament would forestall arms races. And forestalling arms races calmed tensions. By reducing tensions, they freed up resources that would have been diverted to armaments. Those resources could then be used to achieve the Millennium Development Goals. But failing to advance disarmament broke that chain. A disarmament stalemate could also jeopardize other key United Nations Charter goals. And so, the United Nations had to lead efforts to improve the global security climate. That was why the Conference's meetings at this 2008 session were so important.
Even with widespread agreement on the gravity of threats to international peace and security, the Conference still had not been able to find common cause to address them. Mr. Ban was deeply troubled by this impasse over priorities. Last year, the Conference had been poised to resume its role as the world’s pre-eminent disarmament negotiating body. The six Presidents for 2007 had crafted a proposal for negotiations to begin on a treaty to ban the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices – and to focus on other core issues: nuclear disarmament, negative security assurances, and preventing an arms race in outer space. When the Conference had been on the verge of reaching a decision on that draft presidential decision last June, Secretary-General Ban had called on them to move forward in a spirit of compromise to seize that historic opportunity. They had not. He was here now to personally renew that call. In setting priorities, Conference members were under no constraints as to how to conduct their substantive work, other than to proceed on the basis of consensus.
The Conference on Disarmament had not lost its relevance – but it is in danger of losing its way, Mr. Ban cautioned. To get back on the path to success, the Conference had to rekindle the ambition and sense of common purpose that produced its past accomplishments, including the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the Chemical Weapons Convention and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. Those milestone pacts showed the potential of the Conference. To harness that now, they needed political vision. He called on foreign ministers and other political leaders to come to the Conference on Disarmament and encouraged a return to productive work. The fate of the draft presidential decision would depend greatly on forward-thinking leadership and political support. In that process, the Conference on Disarmament would continue to have the Secretary-General's full support for the start of negotiations on a fissile material treaty. Those talks would advance nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation objectives – and they were needed now. In making that call, he was not at all discounting the importance of preventing an arms race in outer space, or negative security assurances, or nuclear disarmament per se. However, the Conference had to decide how to organize its treatment of those issues without holding any of them hostage to the others.
Mr. Ban concluded by assuring the Conference on Disarmament of his full support and calling on it to make 2008 a "breakthrough" year.
ABDELWAHEB ABDALLAH, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Tunisia, paid tribute to the Secretary-General for his presence at this important session and his willingness to enhance the efficiency of the Conference on Disarmament. The Tunisian presidency was an important opportunity to reiterate Tunisia’s attachment to the principles of the United Nations Charter. Tunisia also renewed its determination to join the efforts undertaken by the international community aimed at reviving multilateral disarmament processes, and was determined to exert all efforts to contribute to the success of the activities of the Conference. The Conference needed to act with a consensual approach. The excellent ties of friendship and cooperation between Tunisia and Member States of the Conference contributed in facilitating and reinforcing dialogue as a fundamental instrument.
Mr Abdallah noted with satisfaction the progress made during the last two years and reiterated their determination to work in a spirit of constructive dialogue with the objective to reach consensual solutions. The Tunisian approach of international relations was based on a tight interdependence between security, peace and development. The relationship between disarmament and development, which was among the challenges facing the international community in order to contain poverty and focus efforts towards the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals, was also stressed.
Statements
VALERY LOSCHININ (Russian Federation), speaking on behalf of the Group of Eastern European States, said that the Secretary-General’s address here today was of particular meaning and significance for all of them. The Conference regarded his presence here today as a manifestation of his enduring commitment to disarmament and non-proliferation, and also as evidence of how highly their forum was valued by the Secretary-General personally. Undoubtedly, his address to the Conference and his personal presence would give new impetus to their work.
The Eastern European Group took this opportunity to renew its commitment to use all of its influence and resources to foster consensus for enabling the Conference to start its substantive work on the basis of an agreed programme of work. In spite of the well-known complications the situation in the Conference had recently changed for the better. Its meetings had become markedly more active, and they had succeeded in holding serious and far-reaching discussions on all agenda items. Trust among partners had also increased. They could achieve progress allowing for a just and meaningful consideration of the views of all stakeholders. They expected that the signal the Secretary-General had sent to the Conference today would lead to improving an atmosphere of constructive cooperation with a key objective: ensuring the leading role of the Conference on Disarmament in addressing the security challenges faced by the contemporary world and elaborating concrete measures to secure peace on the planet.
DAYAN JAYATILLEKA (Sri Lanka) speaking on behalf of the Group of 21, said that the Group of 21 had absolute confidence that the Tunisian President of the Conference would guide the affairs of the Conference with commitment. They felt they were in safe hands. The presence of the Secretary-General was the expression of the importance he attached to the issues of this Conference.
The Group of 21 was the least complicit and yet the most vulnerable in the issue of nuclear build-up. They stood to gain the most from disarmament in the area of development. They would cooperate fully in all efforts in order to achieve progress. They would seek mutuality of interest and would seek to understand the concerns of all. There was a real need for consensus, and the Group of 21 was sure that that would be the case under the Presidency of Tunisia.
LUCIA FIORI (Italy), speaking on behalf of the Group of Western States, warmly thanked Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon for having come to the Conference on Disarmament and shared with them his thoughts on the central role and responsibilities of the Conference within the disarmament machinery. His presence at the opening of the session was a positive injection to prepare the ground for future substantive work in the Conference.
In 2007, the Conference on Disarmament had engaged in constructive, structured and serious discussions that had taken place during its first session and that had created a significant momentum. That momentum had developed through the efforts of the platform of the six Presidents of the Conference (the P6) with the appointment of coordinators for seven items of the Conference’s agenda. The deliberations held under the coordinators had proven to be productive and thought-provoking. That exercise had culminated in the presentation of a Presidential draft decision (L.1) and two further documents (CRP.5 and CRP.6) issued in a serious a comprehensive process to add clarity and to provide answers to questions raised by some delegations. However, the Western Group was aware that some very important bridges towards a consensus for future work still needed to be crossed.
LI YANG (China), at the outset assured the President of the Conference on Disarmament that China would continue to work in a constructive spirit and would give him their constructive support. China appreciated the presence of the Secretary-General here today, as well as that of the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Tunisia, and the speeches they had both made, which were full of high expectations and enthusiasm for the Conference's work. In both of those speeches, the progress made in the Conference had been noted, as well as the challenges that it faced. Those comments were faithful reflections of the actual situation and of progress that had been made.
A positive outcome in the Conference was in the positive interests of the whole international community, China underscored. It was hoped that the Conference would respect the views of all partners, and accept a balanced programme of work that was acceptable to all parties. China, for its part would continue to work in a constructive spirit towards that end.
For use of the information media; not an official record
DC08004E