PRESS CONFERENCE BY MONGOLIA

Press Briefing

PRESS CONFERENCE BY MONGOLIA

The Government of Mongolia was optimistic that Member States, including the five-nuclear-weapon States, would cooperate in strengthening its international security environment, thereby rendering its quest for nuclear-weapon-free status stronger and more credible, the Permanent Representative of Mongolia to the United Nations told a Headquarters press conference on Monday afternoon.

Jargalsaikhany Enkhsaikhan said that the purpose of the press conference was to draw attention to the adoption by the General Assembly last Friday of resolution 53/77 D, entitled "Mongolia's international security and nuclear-weapon-free status". Through its adoption, the Assembly was tackling the issue of the creation of "additional, but non-traditional", nuclear-weapon-free areas. That innovative approach was based on acceptance by the world community that even a single State had the right to acquire an internationally recognized nuclear-weapon-free status, bearing in mind its particular interests, as well as those of its neighbours, and of the stability of the region in general.

He said that negotiations conducted in the past year had led to the conclusion that the nuclear-weapon-free status of small States, like Mongolia, which did not belong to any regional security arrangements, would be credible and stronger provided that its overall security was internationally recognized and strengthened. For that reason, the resolution, in its third operative paragraph, linked Mongolia's nuclear-weapon-free status with a strengthened international security environment and future practical steps towards its achievement.

(By the terms of the third operative paragraph, the Assembly invited Member States, including the five nuclear-weapon States, to cooperate with Mongolia in taking the necessary measures to consolidate and strengthen Mongolia's independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, inviolability of its frontiers, its economic security, ecological balance and its nuclear-weapon-free status, as well as its independent foreign policy.)

He said his country's optimism about its future nuclear-weapon-free status was based on its good relations with all States, especially with its neighbours, China and the Russian Federation. Appropriate security arrangements with its neighbours would reinforce that confidence and hopefully enhance regional stability. A well-balanced set of arrangements could also be linked to emerging regional security arrangements in the rest of Asia. Towards the challenging task of defining those security arrangements, the resolution sought the necessary assistance from the Secretary-General and relevant United Nations bodies, and asked the Secretary-General to report on the text's implementation at the Assembly's fifty-fifth session.

A correspondent asked how Mongolia's neighbours would be affected by its nuclear-weapon-free status. Mr. Enkhsaikhan said that his country's two neighbours had supported the initiative, which should make it possible to develop an agreement, either bilaterally, trilaterally, or even with the participation of the other nuclear-weapon States and the United Nations. The other nuclear-weapon States had also been forthcoming, but they had underlined the exceptional nature of Mongolia's situation.

Asked if Mongolia's nuclear-weapon-free status would affect the nuclear strategy of either China or the Russian Federation, he said their nuclear strategic interests would not be directly affected. Indeed, the agreement signed by the Russian Federation on friendly relations and cooperation with Mongolia contained a special pledge of Russia's support for Mongolia's nuclear-weapon-free initiative. Similarly, Chinese government authorities had, on numerous occasions, underlined their support for the initiative.

To a question about why consideration of the resolution in the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) had been delayed, he said that the Chinese delegation had sought the inclusion of language which identified the three other nuclear-weapon States. The Chinese felt that the initial reference in the text to "States concerned" did not make clear the direct involvement required of France, the United Kingdom and the United States. In order to allay those concerns, the Mongolian delegation had included a reference to "the five nuclear-weapon-States".

Asked what kind of "relevant security" arrangements were envisaged in operative paragraph 4 of the text, he said that the authors had in mind the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) regional forum. There was some discussion that security arrangements might be developed in North-East Asia. As part of the international community, and as a State which did not belong to any regional security arrangements, his country was open to dialogue and perhaps even to joining such regional security arrangements.

Continuing, Mr. Enkhsaikhan said that the problem currently faced by his country concerned the difficulties that some nuclear-weapon States had with accepting a single-State zone. Those States could, however, accept a State's nuclear-weapon status. It was now up to Mongolia and the States concerned, including the nuclear-weapon-States, to define that status. He hoped such an agreement would be reached by the fifty-fifth Assembly session, although it was still too early to determine its form. The result might not be a full-fledged nuclear-weapon-free zone for Mongolia. The initiative had shown, however, that with "give and take" and an understanding of one's neighbours, it was possible to arrive at some agreement.

Would Mongolia's nuclear-weapon-free status prohibit the use of air space for nuclear weapons between China and Russia? another correspondent asked. He said that when Mongolia had declared itself a nuclear-weapon-free

Mongolia Press Conference - 3 - 8 December 1998

zone in 1992, it sought respect for the sovereignty of both its land and air space, but that question would be clarified during future negotiations with the five nuclear-weapon-States.

Asked about the concern of some nuclear-weapon-States in setting a precedent with Mongolia's nuclear-weapon-free status, he said that those States had their own strategic doctrines in which his country's initiative did not fully fit. If an island State, for example, were to declare itself a nuclear-weapon-free zone, then according to international law, the areas adjacent to that island -- specifically 200 nautical miles -- would be affected and the naval forces of the nuclear-weapon-States would have difficulties cruising freely through those vast waters. That was their main problem, which was not, however, applicable to Mongolia.

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