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Mr Chairman,
New Zealand joins others in congratulating you on your appointment as Chair of this Committee. We stand ready to assist you in any way we can, including as one of your Vice-Chairs, as you guide us through our important work.
New Zealand continues to be a strong advocate for greater progress towards the achievement of a world free of nuclear weapons. We are pleased to associate ourselves fully with the statement already made by Egypt on behalf of our New Agenda Coalition.
Mr Chairman,
Our task here is two-fold. We must review progress that has been made in the period since the last Review Conference; and we must chart a course for our future work leading to the 2015 Review Conference.
As to the review of progress, New Zealand, like others, has been very heartened by recent positive developments in support of a world free of nuclear weapons. While we may have wished that it went further in some areas - operational readiness is one such example - we nonetheless welcome the recently announced US Nuclear Posture Review as a significant step in the right direction. Above all, we are pleased at its reaffirmation of the commitment made by US President Obama in Prague last year to reduce the size and role of the US nuclear arsenal.
We welcome Secretary General Ban’s strong push in his five-point plan for progress towards a world free of nuclear weapons.
We congratulate the US and Russia on their agreement on a replacement nuclear arms reduction treaty. New START has the potential to deliver significant cuts in the deployed nuclear weapons of the two largest arsenals. We are heartened by the commitment from both countries that this agreement is not the end point but rather the beginning of a process towards further nuclear disarmament. As they undertake these further reductions, we urge both the US and Russia to recall the agreement in 2000 that the principle of irreversibility must apply to nuclear disarmament measures.
These most recent milestones follow measures taken over the period by other nuclear-weapon States towards implementing their Article VI obligations. Naturally, however, while we recognise and welcome the progress that has been made, we will continue to pursue more. The stronger the progress made towards the elimination of nuclear weapons, the weaker the rationalisations for proliferation become.
Mr Chairman,
Despite these positive developments, the fact remains that 40 years after the NPT’s entry into force, we continue to live in the shadow of thousands of nuclear weapons. We have all recognised the need to work for a world where nuclear weapons have no place in the international security framework – this Review Conference provides an excellent opportunity to pursue real and concrete progress towards this objective.
A diminishing role for nuclear weapons in security strategies should be our guiding principle. This is not just about numbers, although progressive reductions are of course both required and welcome. It is about devaluing the role of nuclear weapons in security strategies, and reducing reliance on them.
One tangible demonstration of a reduced role for nuclear weapons is lowering their operational readiness. New Zealand is pleased to co-ordinate the Operational Readiness Group this year and will deliver a statement on behalf of Chile, Malaysia, Nigeria, Switzerland and my own country, New Zealand, on the importance of steps to address the high alert levels of nuclear weapons.
Mr Chairman,
The entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty would represent a very significant milestone towards the goal of a world free of nuclear weapons. New Zealand continues to call on all States that have not yet done so to ratify the Treaty without any further delay. In this regard, we are heartened by positive announcements by the US and by Indonesia that CTBT ratification is under serious consideration, and we very much welcome also Papua New Guinea’s announcement that they will ratify shortly.
A treaty on fissile materials would be another important way station. We share the immense disappointment and frustration of others at the lack of progress in the Conference on Disarmament towards the commencement of negotiations on such a treaty. New Zealand has long stood ready to work with all CD members towards achieving consensus on the means for getting these negotiations under way. Our patience is not infinite.
New Zealand welcomes the growing willingness over recent years by some of the nuclear-weapon States, including at this Review Conference, to provide information about their nuclear holdings and on steps being taken towards nuclear disarmament. Most recently, we were particularly pleased to hear Secretary of State Clinton’s announcement that the US would take concrete steps to increase the transparency of its nuclear arsenal.
Overall, however, the current approach of ad hoc reporting does not serve the Treaty well. There is a need for a more systematic approach - and New Zealand is pleased therefore to join with Australia to promote at this Review Conference an initiative on Article VI reporting.
We will speak to that paper in more detail later today. We would like to emphasise at this juncture, however, our strong belief that Article VI reporting, especially by the nuclear-weapon States, would foster a climate conducive to further progress on disarmament.
Mr Chairman,
New Zealand is also pleased to be associated with the joint statement on disarmament and non-proliferation education delivered by Japan. The need to increase awareness of the issues at hand at all levels of society is a corollary of the enormous consequences to humankind of any use of nuclear weapons.
Mr Chairman,
My delegation believes that this Conference is taking place at a time when there seems to be genuine prospects for progress on nuclear disarmament and on non-proliferation. It is important that we build on recent positive momentum and deliver a comprehensive and forward-looking action plan on nuclear disarmament - as well, of course, on the other pillars of the NPT.
My own and other delegations have sought to be helpful in putting forward elements for inclusion in these action plans. In the context of this Committee I would reference in particular, those put forward by the NAC, and those papers on de-alerting, and on transparency. We welcome also complementary proposals such as the joint paper submitted by Australia and Japan.
New Zealand stands ready to work with all delegations to secure an action plan on disarmament that takes us closer to our ultimate objective – a world without nuclear weapons.
