Disarmament Commission 2007
Chairperson: Elbio Rosselli (Uruguay)
Vice-Chairpeople: Representatives of Benin, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Germany, Islamic Republic of Iran, Nigeria, Peru, Poland, and Switzerland
Rapporteur: Bassam Darwish (Syrian Arab Republic)
This year is the second in a three-year cycle that focused on two agreed agenda items: recommendations for achieving the objectives of nuclear disarmament and nuclear non-proliferation; and practical confidence-building measures in the field of conventional weapons.
During the 2007 session, the UNDC's nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation working group made some headway. The Chair, Ambassador Zinsou of Benin, produced a paper that was relatively well-received. However, after nearly a week of additions, the paper grew to a formidable 16 pages, turning into more of a compilation of views than a document of consensus recommendations. On the suggestion of several governments, he resubmitted a relatively short simple paper that could be agreed upon, but was clearly the lowest-common denominator and deficient in disarmament. The Report of the Disarmament Commission for 2007 notes that the Chair hopes his working paper “will be a basis for further deliberations for the formulation of consent recommendations” at the end of 2008.
