STATEMENT
BY H.E.Mr. Yasuhide NAKAYAMA,
VICE-MINISTER
FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF JAPAN
CONFERENCE
ON DISARMAMENT
Geneva,
4 March 2008
Mr. President,
Ambassador Ahmet Üzümcü,
Distinguished delegates,
Ladies and gentlemen,
On behalf of Japan, it’s my great pleasure to address the Conference on
Disarmament. I am
convinced that it befits my country to speak for peace, as Japan has suffered
the devastation of the
Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bombings, and has not engaged
in any battle with a single country ever since the end of World War II. Japan knows the meaning of peace through
the lessons of its own history. The
Fukuda cabinet has expressed both at home and abroad its will that Japan
is going to contribute to the international community as a “Peace Fostering Nation”.
Mr. President,
The CD is the single multilateral disarmament
negotiating forum; nonetheless, the CD has been in deadlock for over a decade. Japan considers this an extremely
regrettable situation. Last year,
the CD conducted important substantive discussions on all its agenda items, in
particular the four core issues, and then the six presidents of 2007 produced
proposal L.1. We believe L.1, along
with the complementary documents, constitutes a pragmatic compromise. This package objectively reflects the current conditions
within the CD. Japan calls on all
the Member States to reach agreement on L.1 in order to break the ongoing impasse
in the CD and thereby contribute to the improvement of the international security
environment. In this regard, I
would like to express my appreciation to the UN Secretary General for his strong
words of encouragement in this year’s opening Plenary. The Secretary General renewed his call
for the CD to move forward in the spirit of compromise to seize the historic
opportunity, emanating from the draft presidential decision.
Mr. President,
As the only country to have experienced the destructive
effects of atomic bombings, Japan
seeks a peaceful world free from nuclear weapons to enhance international security. To
this end, it is vital for the whole world to share the vision of “a world free of
nuclear weapons”, by overcoming the differences
in position of the nuclear-weapon States and the non-nuclear-weapon
States. With
such a vision, our annual UN General Assembly resolution entitled
“Renewed determination towards the total elimination of nuclear weapons” is consistently adopted by an overwhelming majority. This resolution demonstrates my country’s belief that we should
build upon practical and concrete measures for nuclear disarmament and nuclear
non-proliferation. Japan appreciates there has
recently been a surge in debate on practical measures toward the total
elimination of nuclear weapons.
In this context, I cannot emphasize enough the importance of the international community collectively
tackling challenges the NPT regime is facing. A grave challenge is the danger of NPT non-nuclear-weapon States secretly developing
nuclear weapons under the cover of the right to nuclear energy for
peaceful purposes. Similarly, the
universalization of the NPT is also a challenge. For the success of the 2010 NPT Review
Conference, Japan
greatly hopes that further meaningful and substantive discussions will be conducted at the
Second Session of the Preparatory Committee. These discussions should be based on the outcomes of the First Preparatory
Committee, chaired by Ambassador Amano of Japan.
Mr. President,
I should emphasize the
necessity of all the nuclear-weapon States fulfilling their strong commitment to
Article VI nuclear disarmament. While welcoming the nuclear
disarmament efforts of the United States
and the Russian Federation,
including the significant
reduction in the U.S.
nuclear weapons stockpile, Japan
hopes for a successor arrangement to START. We also call for greater transparency by all the nuclear-weapon
States in their nuclear disarmament efforts. In this connection, we welcome the recent high-level presentations by some of the nuclear-weapon States on their efforts. Furthermore, we believe it is important for the
nuclear-weapon States to apply the principles of irreversibility and
verifiability to their nuclear disarmament measures.
The early entry into
force of the CTBT is also crucial. The ratification of the CTBT by Colombia
in particular was encouraging, as the number of Annex 2 countries that have yet
to ratify the CTBT has now entered single digits. Japan will continue to call for the
ratification of the CTBT by all countries, and expects that the moratorium on nuclear test explosions
will be maintained pending the Treaty’s entry into force. Japan will also continue to assist
the preparation of the verification regime.
Moreover, the early start of
negotiations in the CD on a treaty banning the production of fissile material
for nuclear weapons or nuclear explosive devices (FMCT) is vital. An FMCT would be a significant nuclear
disarmament measure, since it would cap the
amount of nuclear weapons. The Final Documents of the 1995 and 2000 NPT
Review Conferences affirmed the necessity of an FMCT. In the work
of the CD in 2006 and 2007, it
became even more apparent that an FMCT was sufficiently ripe for the
commencement of negotiations. Japan strongly appeals to all countries that negotiations on an FMCT should
commence without delay.
Furthermore, we urge all the nuclear-weapon States and non-NPT State
Parties to declare a moratorium on the production of fissile material for
nuclear weapons or nuclear explosive devices pending the entry
into force of a treaty.
Mr. President,
Japan is making active
efforts towards the peaceful use of outer space. With a view that an arms race in outer space
should be prevented, Japan
has been engaged in the discussions on this issue within the CD, and other international
fora. On 12 February this year, H.
E. Mr. Sergey Lavrov, the Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation presented to the
CD a joint Russian-Chinese draft “Treaty on the Prevention of the Placement of
Weapons in Outer Space” (PPWT). Japan
is ready to examine and discuss all the various issues surrounding the
prevention of an arms race in outer space, including the draft PPWT.
Japan supports the basic
concept of negative security assurances.
Since it is the nuclear-weapon States that grant NSAs, it is necessary
for us to build common understanding among the nuclear and the
non-nuclear-weapon States to advance discussions on this issue. Last year’s discussions on NSAs showed significant
differences in position regarding how to address this issue. Therefore, further discussions to narrow
those differences are meaningful.
Mr. President,
This year Japan
holds the presidency of the G8, and will host the G8 Summit in Hokkaido Toyako
in July. The Summit will raise the issue of the
non-proliferation of WMDs. Japan looks
forward to a strong G8 message toward strengthening the international non-proliferation
regime.
Additionally, Japan
will be hosting the Fourth Tokyo International Conference on African
Development (TICAD IV) this year.
As peace is a fundamental basis for development, Japan has consistently focused on
the reconstruction and rehabilitation of countries. Disarmament is important to establishing
peace. As the UN Secretary General
pointed out, resources can be freed up from spending on armaments and instead be
used for economic development, including the achievement of the Millennium
Development Goals. Japan
is energetically cooperating for the maintenance, rehabilitation and construction
of a peaceful world, and aims to be a “Peace Fostering Nation”.
I thank you for
your kind attention.