The 2000 NPT Review Conference
14 April - 19 May 2000, New York

Statement delivered by H.E. Mr. Jaime Gama
(on behalf of the European Union)
State Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Portugal

2000 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons

New York, 24 April 2000

Mr President,

1. The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons is and will continue to be the cornerstone of the global non-proliferation regime and the essential foundation for the pursuit of nuclear disarmament. We support wholeheartedly the objectives laid down in the Treaty and we are committed to the effective implementation of the decisions and the resolution of the 1995 Review and Extension Conference.

2. Today, conscious of the need of all states parties to make further constructive efforts to achieve those goals, we renew our pledge to contribute to strengthening the review process and to the success of this conference. To that end the EU has adopted a Common Position outlining its thinking on some substantive issues that it feels should be tackled by the Review Conference and on concrete actions to be taken.

Mr President,

3. The EU would wish to see this Review Conference confirm the fundamental role the Treaty plays in strengthening global peace and security and the pursuit of global disannament, coupled with promotion of support for the global non-proliferation regime.

4. We must take stock of what has been achieved in all these areas during the last five years, including the implementation of the undertakings of the states parties under the Treaty. We must also move forward by identifying areas in which, and of means through which, further progress towards the full implementation of the Treaty should be sought in the future.

5. Since the last Review and Extension Conference nine additional states, (Andorra, Angola, Brazil, Chile, Comoros, Djibouti, Oman, United Arab Emirates and Vanuatu) have acceded to the Treaty and we welcome this development. We urgently call upon those four states that have not yet adhered to the Treaty, in particular those three that operate non-safeguarded nuclear facilities and have not renounced the nuclear weapons option to take steps to become parties to the Treaty.

6. South Asia continues to be an area of deep concern to the EU. The nuclear tests conducted by India and Pakistan run counter to global efforts towards nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament. We continue to call upon both countries to meet all the requirements set out in UNSC Resolution 1172.

We appeal to countries in the region to undertake all possible efforts to prevent a nuclear arms race, which would have further negative effects not only for stability and security in South Asia, but would also be detrimental to international efforts towards nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament.

We welcome the readiness of India and Pakistan to participate in the negotiations, of a convention banning the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices and call them to sign and ratify the CTBT. We note that India has in place export controls of nuclear weapons related material, equipment and technology and invite it to strengthen them. We call on Pakistan to express the same readiness to play a positive role in that field.

7. The EU remains committed to the resolution on the Middle East adopted by the 1995 Review and Extension Conference and to its full implementation. The EU hopes that the ongoing negotiations will also set the pace for the creation of incentives to the parties to abide by the terms of that resolution. We continue to support efforts to establish an effectively verifiable Middle East zone free of weapons of mass destruction, nuclear, chemical and biological, and their delivery systems. Today in this Forum we renew our call on the only state in the region that has not yet done so to accede to the NPT and to place its nuclear activities under full scope safeguards. The EU also calls on all states in the region to conclude the required comprehensive safeguards agreement.

8. Compliance with the NPT is an issue to which the EU attaches particular importance. We urge Iraq to come into prompt compliance with UNSC Resolution 1284. Similarly, the situation regarding the implementation of safeguards in the DPRK is still the subject of serious concern to the European Union. Despite efforts by the IAEA, no progress has been made on any of the important issues outstanding since 1994. We urge the DPRK to cooperate with the agency and to implement fully its IAEA safeguard agreement. The EU recalls its financial and technical contribution to the activities of KEDO in the Korean peninsula.

Mr President,

9. As set out in its Common Position, it is the intention of the EU to help build consensus on substantive issues in. the 2000 NPT Review Conference, taking into account the* substantive preparations in the three sessions of the Preparatory Committee and bearing in mind the fundamental importance of the decisions and resolution adopted by the 1995 Review and Extension Conference.

10. To this end, the EU strongly supports the early entry into force of the CTBT through ratification without delay and without conditions, in particular by the 44 states whose ratification is required for the Treaty to enter into force. We in the EU have already signed and ratified the Treaty. We are actively involved in promoting universal adherence to it and we will continue our efforts until the mechanisms established by the Treaty become fully operational. We welcome therefore the announcement by the Russian Federation that the State Duma has approved the treaty for ratification. We particularly call upon those NWS that have not done so, to expedite their ratification process so as to stimulate others to follow the same path. We deeply regret, in this connection, the upset to the ratification process in the US. The US commitment to abide by the terms of the Treaty is in the meantime a positive step by a signatory whose ratification is essential to the Treaty. The EU also underlines its full support for the efforts to establish the Treaty's verification regime in a timely and effective manner and underlines the need for the provision of adequate financial support to enable the CTBT international monitoring system to be established according to the Treaty.

11. Immediate commencement and early conclusion of negotiations in the CD in Geneva on a treaty banning the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices is central for strengthening nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear disarmament. We support the efforts being undertaken at the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva to restart negotiations without delay on a non-discriminatory, multilateral and internationally and effectively verifiable treaty, on the basis of the Shannon report and the mandate contained therein. The EU calls on all states, which have not yet done so, to stop the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices.

12. The EU will continue to encourage the determined pursuit by the NWS of systematic and progressive efforts to reduce nuclear weapons globally, with the ultimate goal of eliminating those weapons and by all States of general and complete disarmament under strict and effective international control. We acknowledge steps taken in this direction and towards applying increased transparency and the principle of irreversibility in the field of nuclear disan-nament and arms controls. Subject to an agreement on a mandate, an ad hoc Working Group under agenda item I of the Conference on Disarmament could contribute to further progress in this area.

13. The EU welcomes the approval for ratification of START II by Russia as an important step towards enhancing global stability and security. The EU is calling for the prompt entry into force and timely implementation of this treaty and its protocol. We urge an early start to negotiations on a START III treaty, which would bring further significant reductions in strategic nuclear weapons and the verified dismantlement of nuclear warheads.

14. The EU would also wish to see non strategic nuclear weapons included in the framework of arms reduction efforts and we welcome as a first step in this direction the declared intention of the USA and the Russian Federation to explore possible transparency measures related to such weapons as well as ways to reduce their relevance and numbers.

15. The EU believes that the application of the principl e of irreversibility is essential to guide all measures in the field of nuclear disarmament and arms control, as a contribution to the maintenance and reinforcement of international peace, security and stability, taking these conditions into account. Furthermore, the EU believes that increased transparency as a voluntary CBM supports further progress in disarmament.

16. We reaffirrn the importance of the ABM Treaty, as one of the pillars o strategic stability. The EU wishes to see that Treaty preserved.

17. The EU recognises that the existing security assurances as provided through the protocols of the nuclear weapons free zones and unilateral declarations of NWS, noted by UNSC Resolution 984/1995, are a means by which security concerns of non-nuclear weapon states are addressed as far as the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons is concerned. It remains ready to pursue the consideration of the issue of negative security assurances, for NNWS parties to the NPT. As agreed in 1995 principles and objectives, this could take the form of a legally binding instrument.

18. As regards nuclear weapons-free zones, we in the EU acknowledge the importance of such zones and consider them as a valuable complementary instrument to the NPT. We welcome the progress in the development of such zones since 1995 and we strongly support signature and ratification by the NWS of the relevant protocols of NWFZ, recognising that treaty based security assurances are available to such zones. We also underline the importance of concerned states taking steps to bring into effect the assurances provided by such treaties and their protocols. Furthermore, we welcome the agreement in the UN Disan-nament Commission on guidelines for the establishment of such zones.

Mr President,

19. The IAEA's international safeguards have proved to be of great value towards global non-proliferation, but in order to address successfully the proliferation challenges that lie ahead, we must make sure that the existing safeguards system is strengthened to enhance the agency's ability to detect clandestine nuclear activity and ensure the efficiency of the resulting safeguards system.

20. We call on all non nuclear weapons states to conclude agreements with the IAEA as soon as possible to meet the requirements of Article III of the NPT. We reaffirm the provisions of the principles and objectives decision of the final document (part 1) of the NPTREC regarding safeguards. The EU also calls on all states with safeguards agreements already in place to conclude and bring into force additional protocols with the IAEA as soon as possible with a view to the early implementation of a strengthened safeguards system. For our part, many states in the EU have now completed their, procedures for the entry into force of the additional protocol, while in others preparations for this are well under way.

21. Furthermore the EU calls on NWS, as agreed at the Moscow G7/P8 summit on nuclear safety on 19-20 April 1996, to place fissile material designated as no longer required for defence purposes under appropriate international safeguards and physical protection.

22. International co-operation to develop research, production and use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, for example in the field of nuclear safety, nuclear waste management, material science, agriculture and medicine, should be facilitated in accordance with the NPT. Such activities also entail corresponding responsibilities of states to use sensitive materials, equipment and technologies in a way that will not jeopardise the non-proliferation regime.

23. The establishment of an appropriate system of export controls should not be regarded as a hindrance but has an essential element to further the objectives of a close -co-operation in the use of nuclear energy, while at the same time generating confidence between suppliers, recipient states and the international community at large that such materials, technology and equipment are only used for peaceful purposes. To avoid persistent misunderstandings in this regard, a greater transparency is needed in nuclear related export controls within a framework of dialogue and co-operation between all parties and the Nuclear Suppliers Group must be commended for efforts undertaken with this objective in mind.

24. The Zangger Committee also deserves a special mention in this regard for the work it has done in the field of export controls.

25. The EU calls on all states with nuclear materials on their territory'to maintain and improve, as appropriate, their own arrangements for nuclear materials accountancy, safety and physical protection, applying the appropriate internationally agreed standards.

26. We equally call upon states that have not yet done so, to accede to the physical protection convention, adopt relevant physical protection and basic safety standards and introduce and enforce appropriate measures and legislation to combat illicit trafficking in nuclear and other radioactive material.

27. We further underline the importance of continuing international cooperation in order to strengthen nuclear safety, safe waste management and radiological protection and call upon states that have not yet done so to accede to all relevant conventions as soon as possible and to fully implement their ensuing commitments.

Mr President,

28. The EU has had the privilege to open the debate and outline the views of its Member States on some of the major issues before us during this Review Conference. The Central and Eastern European countries associated with European Union (Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia) and the associated countries (Cyprus, Malta and Turkey), as well as the EFTA countries members of the European Economic Area (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway) align themselves with this statement. We strongly urge all states parties to maintain and promote the objectives laid down in the Treaty and the 1995 Review and Extension Conference Decisions and Resolution and the strengthened review process if we are to meet the challenges of the 21st century. Let us therefore work together for the success of this Review Conference: the eyes of the world are set on us and we are duty bound to see to it that the measures we adopt will constitute a lasting legacy. The EU, for its part, will promote the incremental progress required for the achievement of the goals of the Treaty.

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