First Committee Holds Organizational Meeting to Adopt Work Programme

The First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) met today in a brief organizational meeting to adopt its agenda and work programme for the sixty-ninth General Assembly session.

According to the work programme, delegations would hold several thematic debates, as in the past year, on such topics as nuclear weapons, other weapons of mass destruction, disarmament aspects of outer space, conventional weapons, other disarmament measures and international security, regional disarmament and security, and the disarmament machinery.

For the general debate, the Committee would have its usual exchange with the High Representative for Disarmament Affairs on follow-up to the resolutions and decisions approved by the Committee in 2013 and subsequently adopted by the General Assembly, also last year.  Additionally, it will have before it an extensive list of reports to be discussed during the body’s general debate.

Detailing the Committee’s work programme, Courtenay Rattray, its Chair, said the general debate on all disarmament and international security-related agenda items would take place during seven meetings, from 7 to 15 October.  The Committee would then turn to its thematic discussions during 11 meetings, from 16 to 28 October.  During this second phase, the Committee would hold a panel discussion with the High Representative and other senior-level officials in the field of arms control and disarmament, focusing on “increasing the capacity of international organizations to address weapons of mass destruction”.  Mr. Rattray said he intended to circulate a concept paper on that topic.

Following the thematic debates, which would also hear introduction of draft resolutions and decisions, the Committee would take action during six meetings, from 29 October to 5 November.  Upon completion of the Committee’s work, the package of texts would be forwarded to the General Assembly for its consideration, before the end of the main part of the sixty-ninth session.

Along with the Committee Chair, the Bureau is comprised of Vice-Chairs Saad N. Abdullah al Saad (Saudi Arabia), Maria Victoria González Román (Spain), Narcisa Daciana Vlădulescu (Romania) and Saada Daher Hassan (Djibouti), who will serve as Rapporteur.

The First Committee will meet again at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, 7 October, to begin its general debate.