STATEMENT

OF THE DELEGATION OF UKRAINE

AN THE FIRST COMMITTEE GENERAL DEBATE

New York, 10 October 2013

 

Mr. Chair,

Excellencies,

Distinguished delegates,

On behalf of the delegation of Ukraine allow me to congratulate you, Mr. Chair, and other members of the Bureau on your election and to express our confidence that your diplomatic skills will lead our deliberations to a successful outcome.

Let me also assure you, Mr. Mr. Chair, of our support for your efforts and of our readiness to cooperate with all delegations in constructive and transparent manner.

Mr. Chair,

My delegation considers the issue of disarmament to be critical to global peace, security and development and believes that general and complete disarmament is the cornerstone of international peace and security.

Ukraine consistently supports a multilateral approach to the disarmament and international security agenda. While recognizing the difficulties in the implementation of existing international treaties and in bringing new ones into force, as well as the deadlock in the disarmament negotiations, we fully reaffirm our commitment to maintaining and strengthening the current disarmament machinery and international cooperation in order to reinforce existing international disarmament and non-proliferation regime.

Mr. Chair,

We share the view that the use of nuclear weapons is the most serious threat that humankind faces nowadays. Ukraine for many years has been consistent in its call for the total elimination of nuclear weapons. We believe that it is essential to strengthen international cooperation in order to reinforce existing international nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation regime.

Pursuing this goal my country has demonstrated a proactive approach and set a pattern to follow by abandoning its nuclear capability and acceding to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) in November 1994, as well as by taking concrete steps to eliminate the use of highly enriched uranium for civilian purposes through the removal of all of its existing stocks from our national territory in March 2012.

Ukraine regards the NPT as the cornerstone of the global nuclear non-proliferation regime and renders comprehensive support to its effective implementation, further strengthening and universalization.

We emphasize the importance of the strict adherence of the States Parties to the provisions of the Treaty and call for application of the effective measures in all its three pillars.

My country welcomes the successful start of the new preparatory cycle for the 2015 Review Conference and notes with appreciation that States had demonstrated their good will to take stock of the last years’ activities and to consolidate the successes achieved in this field by bridging the differences and finding common ground for collaboration in the true spirit of multilateralism.

At the same time Ukraine reiterates the importance of the proper implementation of the objectives of the NPT 2010 Action Plan. The decisions of the 2010 NPT RevCon constitute the reliable reference point for our efforts in this area, as they provide for a set of practical and balanced measures aimed at the universalization and strengthening of the Treaty.

While emphasizing the importance of the implementation of the 2010 NPT RevCon decisions, Ukraine would also like to render its support to the establishment of a zone free of weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East. We consider convening a conference on this issue as one of the priority tasks, successful implementation of which will increase the level of regional and international security and strengthen the nuclear non-proliferation regime.

In this context we also encourage the universalization of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty’s (CTBT) with a view that its entry into force will constitute a tangible stride in attaining the noble objective of a safe and peaceful world free of nuclear weapons. It is of the greatest importance that the integrity of the norms set out by the CTBT is respected. As the current voluntary moratoriums on nuclear weapon tests are valuable, they are no substitute for a binding global ban. In this regard, we call on the relevant Member States to urgently ratify the CTBT.

Ukraine continues to support the development of the IAEA safeguards system and calls on all NPT Parties that have not yet done so, to conclude and strictly implement comprehensive safeguards agreements with the IAEA and to conclude and put into effect Additional Protocols.

We also continue to insist that negotiating and concluding the Fissile Material Cut-Off Treaty (FMCT) will be essential both to constrain nuclear proliferation and to advance the goal of nuclear disarmament. Ukraine strongly appeals for finding common grounds on the issue of existing fissile materials stocks and immediate commencement of negotiations on the FMCT within the framework of the Conference on Disarmament.

Mr. Chair,

Ukraine considers the total elimination of nuclear weapons to be the only absolute guarantee against the scourge of nuclear warfare and supports the call for the immediate adoption of the comprehensive international agreement on the ban of nuclear weapons.

However, we must admit that this goal cannot be achieved in a short period of time. It therefore requires a long-term approach with practical steps and effective disarmament measures to be taken by the international community in a transparent, non-discriminatory, verifiable and irreversible manner, building a system of mutually reinforcing instruments for the achievement and maintenance of a world without nuclear weapons.

Thus, there is an urgent need for a broad and deep consideration of a strategy and tactics of comprehensive nuclear disarmament, which could contribute to establishment of a coherent political framework for attaining nuclear-free world.

From this perspective we supported the adoption of the UNGA resolution A/RES/67/56 on establishment of the Open-ended working group to develop proposals to take forward multilateral nuclear disarmament negotiations (OEWG) as well as the initiative of the Norwegian Government to discuss in a transparent manner the humanitarian impact of nuclear weapons in early March 2013, which once again demonstrated the need to exert all efforts for these weapons never be used again.

Although impressions are rather mixed, credible proposals on practical achievable steps on the path of building G-Zero world are still to be elaborated.

We regret that these initiatives were not supported by major nuclear weapons possessor states, the participation of which could have given strong impetus to the implementation of their outcomes.

Mr. Chair,

As the total elimination of nuclear weapons remains unattainable goal, we continue to insist on granting of the non-nuclear-weapon states with the legally-binding security assurances to protect them from the use or threat of use of this type of weapons of mass destruction.

The issue of the negative security assurances (NSAs) is one of the veritable priorities of the international disarmament agenda and is widely supported by the vast majority of members. Numerous consultations in various international fora have repeatedly acknowledged an urgent need to conclude the relevant binding instrument and demonstrated ripeness of this issue for negotiations.

We recall UN Security Council resolutions 255 (1968) and 984 (1995), containing the relevant unilateral statements of the nuclear-weapon states, in which they gave conditional or unconditional security assurances to non-nuclear-weapon states parties to the NPT, as well as the good practices of non-nuclear-weapon states demonstrated in this field regarding the nuclear-weapon-free zones by signing and ratifying “non-use” protocols to respective treaties.

As a country which declared non-bloc and non-nuclear-weapon status, Ukraine continues to insist on granting of the non-nuclear-weapon states with the legally-binding security assurances. This issue remains to be of particular importance while some states still refuse to give up the development of new types of weapons and the upgrade of the existing nuclear arsenals.

The elaboration of a draft legal international agreement on effective international arrangements to assure non-nuclear-weapon States against the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons will represent an achievable step towards fulfillment of the commitments undertaken under Action 7 of the 2010 NPT Action Plan and will strongly promote further non-proliferation agenda.

UN Member States should utilize all existing institutional mechanisms, including the Conference on Disarmament, to promote the consideration of this issue.

We believe that the convocation of the international conference under the auspices of the United Nations as well as the establishment of the UN Group of Governmental Experts to conduct a relevant thematic study would contribute to the elaboration of the mutually acceptable solution for the provision of security assurances to non-nuclear states.

Moreover, we are of the opinion that in order to provide pertinent support to the entire process of disarmament and to overcome the persistent discords, there is a need for conducting parallel negotiations of NSAs and FMCT. Consideration of both disarmament and non-proliferation objectives on an equal footing and granting them the same level of our attention will contribute to confidence building and mutually reinforce each other, building a new quality of regional and global security.

Mr. Chair,

Speaking about strengthening the safety, security in outer space we welcome the submission by the Group of Governmental Experts of the Study on Outer Space Transparency and Confidence-building Measures requested by UNGA Resolution 65/68.

This May together with the EU Ukraine co-hosted an Open-Ended Consultations on the draft Code of Conduct which enabled an extensive exchange among participants, which we hope will be a step forward to the next round of Open-ended Consultations in November, 2013 in Bangkok, Thailand.

Mr. Chair,

As the current OSCE Chairmanship, Ukraine attaches paramount importance to enhancing cooperation between participating states in the sphere of security and non-proliferation.

In this regard we are planning to conduct the regional workshop on implementation of the United Nations Security Council resolution 1540 (2004), hosted by the Government of Ukraine in cooperation with the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affaires and the Conflict Prevention Center of the OSCE on November 5 – 6, 2013 in Kyiv, Ukraine.

The workshop will focus on the evaluation of the resolution’s implementation and its role in general process of disarmament and non-proliferation. We hope that the event will also facilitate relevant national efforts as well as further regional co-operation.

Mr. Chair,

Ukraine welcomed the investigation launched by the UN Secretary-General into the alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria, and its report on events in Damascus on 21 August. The investigation illustrates the viability of the Secretary-General’s mechanism as an important instrument.

Ukraine also welcomes United Nations Security Council resolution 2118 and the OPCW Executive Council Decision of 27 September 2013 on the destruction of Syria's chemical weapons, as they represent a major step towards a robust, sustainable and unified international response to the crisis in Syria.

 

Mr. Chair,

The revitalization of the multilateral disarmament institutions and negotiations are among the ultimate tasks of the international community.

Therefore we welcome an important step forward taken by the international community through the adoption of the Arms Trade Treaty on 2 April in New York by an overwhelming majority of UN Member States from all regions, which set new international standards as well as provides a forum for transparency and accountability in the conventional arms trade.

In this context we also attach particular attention to the resumption of the activities of the Conference on Disarmament, which we believe is an indispensible instrument of achieving ultimate disarmament and building the world free of nuclear weapons.

Despite longstanding impasse my country has not lost hope in this forum and believes that it remains the most relevant venue for consideration of disarmament agenda. It is so far the best-suited institution by its composition, mandate and requisite sensitivity to the security agenda.

We welcome the fact that during 2013 the CD intensified its efforts for overcoming the ongoing deadlock.

In this vein Ukraine highly commends the adoption of the decision by the Conference (CD/1956 Rev.1) establishing an Informal Working Group to produce a Programme of Work robust in substance and progressive over time in implementation which offers us a significant opportunity to get the Conference back to negotiation of multilateral legally binding instruments in the field of disarmament.

This landmark decision certifies the existing ability of the Conference to adopt consensus decisions by avoiding unnecessary tensions and finding compromise solutions.

Taking into account the possibility of convening multilateral informal consultations during the intercessional period, Ukraine hopes for the successful implementation of this Group’s mandate.

In addition we invite all States to carefully examine the possibilities of strengthening of the inner potential of the Conference based on the package of proposals put forward by the Secretary-General of the CD Mr. Kassym-Jomart Tokayev with a view that launching revitalization process of the CD through raising its functionality and procedural efficiency could well become another starting point in unblocking of the CD’s substantive work.

Mr. Chair,

To conclude my statement, I would like to underline the urgency of consolidating international efforts to strive for achieving progress in the areas of disarmament, non-proliferation and arms control in the United Nations and other forums for the sake of future generations.

Mr. Chair,

Using this opportunity I would like also to invite all of you and all delegates to the Round table discussion “Twenty years of renunciation of nuclear weapons by Belarus, Kazakhstan and Ukraine: lessons learned and prospects of nuclear disarmament” to be held this Thursday.

 

Thank you.