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STATEMENT BY H.E. MR. AKIO SUDA
AMBASSADOR EXTRAORDINARY AND PLENIPOTENTIARY
HEAD OF THE DELEGATION OF JAPAN
TO THE CONFERENCE ON DISARMAMENT
AT THE FIRST COMMITTEE OF THE 64th
SESSION
OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY
NUCLEAR WEAPONS
14 OCTOBER 2009
NEW YORK
Mr. Chairman,
The people of Japan have firmly committed themselves to the
goal of realizing the total elimination of nuclear weapons. Prime Minister Hatoyama stated at the
Security Council summit on 24 September that Japan
has chosen to walk a path of non-nuclear weapons to prevent the vicious cycle
of an arms race. As a country that
has suffered from atomic bombings and has chosen the path of non-nuclear
weapons, I would like to say again that possessing
nuclear weapons per se should not grant states any political advantages in
international politics.
Mr. Chairman,
This year Japan will once again submit a draft resolution on
nuclear disarmament to the First Committee entitled, gRenewed determination
towards the total elimination of nuclear weapons.h Japan finds it greatly encouraging that
each year a high number of supporting votes are cast by UN Member States,
including some nuclear-weapon States.
I would like to call upon the General Assembly to adopt this important
resolution by an overwhelming majority.
Reducing the number of existing nuclear weapons is the first
and foremost priority for the international community. Japan requests the Russian Federation
and the United States to implement fully the Treaty on Strategic Offensive
Reductions (SORT), and to undertake nuclear arms cutbacks beyond those provided
for in that Treaty. From this
perspective, Japan wishes to commend the Russian Federation and the United States
for their efforts to negotiate a legally binding successor to the Strategic
Arms Reduction Treaty (START), which will expire in December. We call upon both states to continue
their intensive negotiations with a view to concluding them as soon as
possible.
On the other hand, the other nuclear-weapon-States should
not wait for the Russian Federation and the United States to initiate cutbacks;
they too have the responsibility to take steps to stop increasing their nuclear
arsenals and to reduce them.
Progress in ensuring transparency and in disclosing information would
enable confidence building, creating a cycle for further nuclear disarmament.
Japan would also like to voice its
appreciation for the historic and timely convening of the United Nations
Security Council summit on nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear
disarmament. The resolution adopted
at the summit addressed the significant challenges in these areas. I believe
that the world has now arrived at the stage where it should consider more
specifically a practical approach to nuclear disarmament, whereby international
stability will be preserved both in establishing the goal of the world without
nuclear weapons as well as in the process of attaining it, while the
international regime of nuclear non-proliferation being maintained and even
enhanced.
The creation of a nuclear weapon free zone, when coordinated
between the five nuclear-weapon States and non-nuclear-weapon States in the region,
would also contribute to nuclear non-proliferation, and consequently to global
and regional peace and security. In
this context, Japan welcomes the entry into force of the Pelindaba Treaty and
the Central Asia Nuclear-Weapon-Free-Zone Treaty. Japan also supports the establishment of
a Middle East free zone of weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear
weapons.
When we advance nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation, we
must address the issues related to the DPRK. The DPRK's development of nuclear and
missile programs is a serious threat to the peace and security of not only the
Northeast Asia but also the international community as a whole, and cannot be tolerated
under any circumstances. It is
imperative that the DPRK comply fully with the relevant Security Council
resolutions and that all the Member States implement these resolutions without
delay. Japan will continue its
efforts to realize the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula through the
Six-Party Talks.
Mr. Chairman,
On our way to further nuclear
disarmament and non-proliferation the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty
(CTBT) is of a very high priority. It
is crucial that we work intensively to promote the early entry into force of the
CTBT, particularly in the lead up to the 2010 NPT Review Conference. We once more strongly encourage the states that have yet to
sign and/or ratify the CTBT, especially the nine Annex 2 States, to do so
without delay. Japan was encouraged
by the commitment of the U.S. Government to pursue ratification of the
treaty. In addition, until entry
into force, it is important for the nuclear-weapon States and states that are
not party to the NPT to fully respect the moratorium on nuclear test
explosions.
If the CTBT is to cap the qualitative
development of nuclear weapons, then a Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty (FMCT) is
to cut the quantitative expansion. An FMCT has been on
the Conference on Disarmament (CD) agenda for more than 10 years and has been a
major global nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation issue for more than 40
years. Japan welcomed the adoption
by consensus of the CDfs programme
of work on May 29, which included a mandate to commence negotiations on a
treaty banning the production of fissile materials for nuclear weapons or other
nuclear explosives devices.
Although it was disappointing that the Conference was unable to start
negotiating during its 2009 session, Japan strongly hopes the CD will adopt
its programme of work at the beginning of next year and commence substantive
work early in its 2010 session, including negotiations on an FMCT.
Mr. Chairman,
Japan does not subscribe to the
argument that we should push nuclear non-proliferation ahead of nuclear
disarmament or vice versa. They are
two wheels of the same cart. Furthermore, the peaceful use of nuclear
energy is another pillar of the NPT.
All these three aspects of the NPT need to be considered in a balanced
manner. In this connection, we
cannot stress enough the significance of the 2010 NPT Review Conference. Even though the Third Session of the
Preparatory Committee was unable to agree on recommendations, it did manage to
expeditiously adopt the agenda and all significant procedural decisions for the
Review Conference. The positive
atmosphere under which the work of the Third Preparatory Committee was carried
out also gives us hope for a productive and substantive Review Conference in
May next year.
Lastly, let me touch
upon the International Commission on Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament,
which was launched under the joint initiative of Japan and Australia. The
Commission has been holding meetings and consultations around the world
throughout the year including in Sydney, Washington D.C., Santiago, Beijing,
Moscow, Cairo and New Delhi, and it will be convening its final meeting this
month in Hiroshima. I am confident
that the Commission will come up with an action-oriented report out of its
activities that will help our constructive deliberations in advance of the 2010
NPT Review Conference and beyond.
Mr. Chairman,
Japan remains
committed to make its utmost contribution in the on-going efforts for global
nuclear disarmament and nuclear non-proliferation in close cooperation with
other Member States.
Thank you.