INTERVENTION BY
H.E. AMBASSADOR MAKARIM WIBISONO
AT THE SECOND SESSION OF THE PREPARATORY
COMMITTEE FOR THE 2000 REVIEW CONFERENCE
OF THE PARTIES TO THE TREATY ON
THE NON-PROLIFERATION OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS

CLUSTER I

GENEVA, 29 APRIL 1998

Mr. Chairman

After listening to important views expressed during the general debate, today we start discussing the implementation of the provisions of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, relating among others, to the issues of nuclear disarmament and the nonproliferation of nuclear weapons.

It is well understood that all the articles as well as the preambular paragraphs of the Treaty are indeed of paramount importance and that they are inter-related. However, my delegation is of the view that the issue of nuclear disarmament deserves a more focused attention in the years ahead, due to the wide ramifications it has for the security and as well as for the survival of humanity.

A number of the views expressed by various NGOs during the afternoon session yesterday were quite pertinent to the question, as they suggest that nuclear weapons pose the greatest danger to mankind and to the survival of civilization. The threat posed by nuclear weapons has universally been recognized since their first use in 1945. In subsequent years, the avoidance of any nuclear catastrophe has been generally attributed to the three C’s - command, control and communication - although no reliable system against accidents caused by technical failures or human fallibilities exists. The arms control expert, Ambassador Richard Butler of Australia wrote that "it has been by good fortune that we have not experienced a nuclear disaster. It is the destructive potential of nuclear weapons which constitutes the moral imperative against them". Such risks can only be reduced but not totally eliminated as remarked by Mr. Paul Bracken when he said: "Until a time arrives when all nuclear weapons are banned from the face of earth, the prudent path to security and survival lies through understanding how to manage and govern these forces".

In facing the danger of war involving nuclear weapons, it is indeed essential to halt and reverse the nuclear arms race and all its aspects with a view to having an eventual complete elimination of nuclear weapons. In this regard, all States Parties of the NPT, in particular those Nuclear-Weapons States, bear the responsibility in implementing the Treaty. In fact my delegation note with regret that, despite the conclusion of limited agreements, the provisions of Article VI and the ninth to twelfth preambular paragraphs of the Treaty have not been fulfilled since the Treaty came into force.

In this regard, my delegation would like to stress the need to take effective measures towards nuclear disarmament. There have been a number of important proposals for nuclear disarmament such as the proposal of the Non-Aligned countries of a Programme of Action for the elimination of nuclear weapons submitted in 1996 and the report of the Canberra Convention which was also released during that year. My delegation, together with the other NAM member countries, calls upon the Conference on Disarmament to establish an ad-hoc committee on nuclear disarmament taking into account all proposals which have been submitted by members of the Group of 21, and to commence negotiations on a phased programme of nuclear disarmament and for the complete elimination of nuclear weapons with a specified time framework, including a nuclear-weapons convention prohibiting the development, production, testing, employment, stockpiling, transfer, threat or use of nuclear weapons and providing for their elimination.

Prior to the initiation of substantive nuclear disarmament measures, certain preliminary steps have to be taken. The role of nuclear weapons in ensuring security should be deligitimized and existing nuclear doctrines abandoned - otherwise there will always be a threat. Even though the Russian Federation and the United States are no longer locked in a military confrontation and the prospect of nuclear warfare has receded, thousands of nuclear weapons are still on hair-trigger alert. The dangers inherent in high alert status are obvious. In this regard, it is understandable that the International Court of Justice, on 8 July 1996, suggested in its Advisory Opinion that a threat or use of force by means of nuclear weapons contrary to Article 2, paragraph 4, of the United Nations Charter, and that failing to meet the requirements of Article 51, would render it unlawful. Therefore, the ICJ unanimously believes that "there exists an obligation to pursue in good faith and bring to a conclusion negotiations leading to nuclear disarmament in all its aspects under strict and effective international control".

Accordingly, all State Parties should commit themselves to fulfill with determination their obligation under Article VI to pursue negotiations in good faith on effective measures relating to the cessation of the nuclear arms race at an early date and to nuclear disarmament. In this framework, the State Parties, in particular the Nuclear-Weapon States, shall inform the Secretary-General of the United Nations of the efforts and measures they have taken on the implementation of the conclusion of the International Court of Justice. In fact, my delegation notes with regret the continuing lack of progress on relevant items of the agenda of the Conference on Disarmament, in particular those relating to the cessation of nuclear arms race, nuclear disarmament, the Convention on the production and stockpiling of weapon-grade fissile materials, the cessation of the production of nuclear weapons and their delivery vehicles, the prevention of arms race in outer space and the establishment of and effective internationally negotiated legally binding instrument of security assurances. In this regard, my delegation is of the view that the international community has the right to expect that nuclear Weapon-States will be more forthcoming within the preparatory process of the 2000 NPT Review Conference.

In conclusion, my delegation would like to point out that nuclear weapons remain extremely dangerous: their indefinite retention brings risks of further proliferation and, sooner or later of their use either by design or by accident. In an insecure and dangerous world, nuclear disarmament has become even more indispensable. In this regard, I would like to refer to para. 4 c) of the Principles and Objectives for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament which calls for the nuclear-weapon States to pursue systematic and progressive efforts to reduce nuclear-weapon globally, with the ultimate goal of eliminating those weapons, as well as for a general and complete disarmament under strict and effective international control by all States. In the post-Cold War era, there is a window of opportunity to make the reduction of nuclear-weapons irreversible and to move towards their internationally verifiable abolition. If we miss the present opportunity and continue with an outmoded way of thinking, a new period of global tension may result, together with a renewed nuclear arms race aggravated by new technological developments and by further proliferation. It is therefore timely to initiate negotiations for nuclear disarmament in all its aspects under multilateral auspices leading to the conclusion of a Nuclear Weapons Convention.