PAKISTAN'S FOREIGN MINISTER BLAMES STALEMATE IN DISARMAMENT CONFERENCE ON EROSION OF TRUST AMONG MEMBERS
Press Release
DCF/330
PAKISTAN'S FOREIGN MINISTER BLAMES STALEMATE IN DISARMAMENT CONFERENCE ON EROSION OF TRUST AMONG MEMBERS
19980324 (Reissued as received; delayed in transmission.)GENEVA, 19 March (UN Information Service) -- The Foreign Minister of Pakistan said this morning that the stalemate in the Conference on Disarmament was partly the result of an erosion of trust among members -- an erosion attributable to the unilateral methods utilized to secure the indefinite extension of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and the adoption of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT).
Addressing the Conference during its weekly plenary, Gohar Ayub Khan said it would be even worse if the current stalemate reinforced the trend of seeking arms control agreements in other forums, notwithstanding the absence of general consensus or participation by all those whose security interests were affected.
The Foreign Minister stressed the importance of pursuing nuclear disarmament within the Conference, saying the "nuclear nightmare is not over". Turning to the situation in the South Asia region, he said recent public utterances by the head of India's BJP party that India would "go nuclear" should evoke global concern.
Mr. Khan's statement drew a response from the Indian representative, who said it was regrettable that the Foreign Minister had sought to highlight issues which, if they were to be seriously addressed, belonged in the bilateral discussions between the Foreign Secretaries of the two countries.
Also speaking this morning were the delegate of Canada and the Permanent Representative of Pakistan. Chairing the discussion was the incoming President of the Conference, Taher Al-Hussami (Syria). Mr. Al-Hussami told participants that efforts to achieve a consensus on a programme of work were proceeding in a satisfactory manner. A solid foundation had been laid for reaching an agreement in this regard during formal consultations last Friday, he said, adding that he would try to build on the momentum achieved in the past few weeks.
Statements
GOHAR AYUB KHAN, Foreign Minister of Pakistan, said the stalemate in the Conference over the last year and a half reflected in part an erosion of mutual trust among Conference members -- an erosion attributable to the unilateral methods utilized to secure the indefinite extension of the NPT and the adoption of the CTBT. It would be even worse if that stalemate reinforced the trend of seeking arms control agreements in other forums, notwithstanding the absence of general consensus or participation by all those whose security interests were affected.
Beneath the manifestations of unilateralism and pulpit diplomacy, the Foreign Minister continued, some in the third world saw a more disturbing design -- the objective of perpetuating an unequal world security order; an order where some States enjoyed total security and others insecurity; an order where some were free to develop, build, deploy and use any weapon, while others were prevented from acquiring the means of self-defence. It was quite natural that the smaller and weaker States should seek to level the playing field by promoting nuclear disarmament, specially now that chemical and biological weapons had been prohibited.
It was sobering to think, he said, that even if START II and START III were concluded, ratified and implemented, the nuclear-weapons arsenals of the two major Powers would be larger than at the time of the Cuban missile crisis. And if the world worried about the stability of bipolar nuclear deterrence during the cold war, it should have sleepless nights about the uncertainty of multipolar nuclear deterrence between five nuclear Powers and perhaps some additional nuclear-capable States. In short, the nuclear nightmare was not over. Indeed, the concept of negative security assurances (NSA) had now been called into question by new doctrines which envisaged the actual use of nuclear weapons against non-nuclear-weapon States, even in response to non-nuclear weapons use or threat of use. It was timely for the Conference to re-establish the ad hoc committee on NSA.
There were several measures for nuclear disarmament which could be negotiated in the Conference, if there was a will to do so, he said. A group of 26 countries had suggested a specific mandate for negotiations on nuclear disarmament in three working groups under an ad hoc committee. That proposal envisaged, as a first step, a legally binding international agreement committing all States to the complete elimination of nuclear weapons. A simple and short treaty could be approved very soon if the political will existed. His delegation was circulating a working paper which illustrated the possible provisions of such a treaty.
Pakistan's positions on all disarmament issues were responsive to the challenging security environment it faced, he said. Pakistan was obliged to contend with the great Power ambitions and aggressive proclivities of its
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eastern neighbour. No responsible government in Islamabad could ignore that due to non-implementation of Security Council resolutions, a brutal eight-year old conflict was under way in occupied Jammu and Kashmir between the Kashmiris and a foreign occupation force of over 600,000. Meanwhile, Pakistan had been subjected to unjust embargoes and sanctions, severely eroding its defence capabilities and creating the military possibility of aggression. But no one should doubt Pakistan's ability and determination to deliver a swift and telling response to any aggression or adventurism against it.
Sadly, he said, the world awakened to the clear and present dangers in South Asia only when Pakistan was obliged to respond to escalatory steps initiated by its neighbour. Recent public utterances and pronouncements by the BJP President that India would "go nuclear" should evoke global concern. South Asia may be pushed into a dangerous arms race. As Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had said, Pakistan "strives for peace and stability in the region". He had taken the initiative to open a comprehensive dialogue with India. Pakistan hoped that dialogue would be sustained with the new Indian Government. Pakistan also hoped that Government would be agreeable to serious negotiations to resolve the core issue of Kashmir.
MARK MOHER (Canada) said there appeared to be a continuing misunderstanding of the Canadian position. Canada had made a formal proposal to try to re-energize the Conference on the issue of a fissile material cut-off treaty and to find a way to re-establish the ad hoc committee on the basis of the Shannon report and the mandate contained therein. Canada continued to be disappointed that this issue had not even been mentioned in the various informal proposals advanced in the Conference in recent weeks. "Are we to conclude that any references have in fact been precluded -- dare we say vetoed -- by one or more delegations?"
On outer space, he continued, other delegations had suggested approaches to the item. After informal consultations, there again seemed to be no clear convergence of views on what might be usefully accomplished in that area. That being said, we note that a Special Coordinator might be appointed to explore the possibility of some agreed activity in that field.
Canada acknowledged that there had been some pressure -- how widespread was unknown -- for the re-establishment of an ad hoc committee on NSAs with the pre-existing mandate, Mr. Moher said. Canada had questioned what such a committee might reasonably be expected to accomplish. In Canada's view, there was a divergence of views on the answer to that question. Accordingly, and consistent with the treatment of other issues, Canada had suggested that a Special Coordinator might be appointed to explore the possibility of some agreed activity in that field. However, those proposals had been ignored. On the basis of Canada's assessment of global and regional realities, and of national and group positions, it seemed there was no chance of substantive progress on this file in the Conference. Canada regretted that. Canada might
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also be wrong. It none the less firmly believed that the most responsible way forward, as with other issues before the Conference, was for the forum to appoint a Special Coordinator "to seek the views of its members on the most appropriate way to deal with the questions related to" that agenda item. SAVITRI KUNADI (India) said it was a matter of great regret that the Foreign Minister of Pakistan had sought, in his statement to the Conference, to highlight issues which, if they were to be seriously addressed, belonged in the bilateral discussion table of the Foreign Secretaries of India and Pakistan. Ms. Kunadi said a reference had been made to Jammu and Kashmir, an integral part of India. It was a source of satisfaction for India and the international community that instigated violence and terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir had been brought under control through the determined efforts of the people and with the restoration of the democratic process. The extent of interference from across the border was evident in the large quantities of illegal weapons seized by India's security forces. Despite such provocation, India had not wavered in its commitment to maintaining the dialogue with Pakistan. Reference had also been made to India's missile programme, she said. India's missile programme was not secret or clandestine. Its test flights were routinely announced in the media as were decisions relating to further development, production and deployment. Those decisions were taken in view of India's national security interests. On the other hand, one could hardly expect similar transparency on the part of a country whose programme was based on clandestine acquisitions, and to date, therefore, was neither confirmed nor denied. The Conference was the sole multilateral negotiating forum for disarmament, Ms. Kunadi said. She would, therefore, recommend that it focus on how to resolve the current impasse in the forum and leave Indo-Pak bilateral issues to the forum for which they were best suited, namely the dialogue at the bilateral level which had been resumed last year. MUNIR AKRAM (Pakistan) said it was not surprising that India would not wish the Conference to consider its nuclear ambitions or its nuclear programme. It was a fact that a political party that today assumed power in New Delhi had declared that India would become a nuclear-weapon State. The question he wished to pose at the Conference was, if any other country had made that declaration, what would have been the reaction of the international community? Should the world congratulate India for its nuclear ambitions and because it would break the monopoly of the five nuclear-weapon States? The international community could not say that. What it could do was to say that India's attitude was a major threat to peace and security in South Asia and the world. Added to that was the brutal conflict in Kashmir. Why were 600,000 Indian troops still in Kashmir if the conflict had ended, as India claimed? Mr. Akram said the Conference should consider issuing a declaration calling on India to reconsider its position and not develop and deploy nuclear weapons. * *** *