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Last chance for the Conference on Disarmament?

Beatrice Fihn | Reaching Critical Will

The Conference on Disarmament (CD) met on Tuesday, 17 May, to open its second part of the 2011 session. The delegations of China,Germany, Brazil, the Informal Group of Observer States, Bulgaria, the European Union, Portugal, Ireland, the Eastern European Group, Chile, Uruguay, Mexico, and Turkey took the floor, mostly focusing on the issue of expansion of membership.

Highlights

  • CD President, Ambassador Qun of China, announced that Mr. Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has been appointed as the Secretary-General of the Conference on Disarmament by the UN Secretary-General. Ambassador Qun said that since no objection had been raised amongst the CD members, he would inform the Secretary-General of the Conference’s concurrence with this decision.
  • Ambassador Hoffmann of Germany reported from the recent meeting in Berlin, where the “Non-Proliferation and Disarmament Initiative”(NPDI) adopted a statement on its work towards achieving nuclear disarmament and strengthening the non-proliferation regime.
  • The delegations of Brazil, Mexico, Bulgaria, the European Union, Ireland, the Eastern European Group, and Chile spoke in favour of expansion of the CD’s membership.
  • The Informal Group of Observer States (IGOS), Portugal, and Uruguay reiterated the long standing calls from non-member states of the CD to discuss the issue of membership expansion and called upon the CD to appoint a special coordinator on this issue.
  • The Turkish ambassador said that any revitalization of the CD should be done within its present membership, as members need to focus on the main issue—adopting a programme of work and resuming negotiations.  

The Berlin Statement
Ambassador Hoffmann of Germany reported from the recent meeting of the Foreign Ministers of Australia, Canada, Chile, Germany, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, Poland, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates, which had decided in September 2010 to form a new cross-regional initiative called the “Non-Proliferation and Disarmament Initiative”. Ambassador Hoffmann shared the outcome statementof that meeting, which contained four concrete proposals for action on key elements of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Action Plan: entry into force and universalization of the Comprehensive Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT); a draft standard reporting form for possible use by the nuclear weapon states; continued advocacy for the universal application of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Additional Protocol in their respective regions; and negotiations on a Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty (FMCT). While the NPDI members have clearly stated their continued preference to negotiate an FMCT within the CD, Ambassador Hoffman noted in his personal capacity that 2011 “may be the last chance for the CD to prove its continued relevance.” He noted that there were already clear signs that the international community will not tolerate the current standstill much longer and argued that it expects the CD to finally fulfill its task again, to negotiate disarmament instruments. 

Expansion of membership
Most speakers took the opportunity to address the issue of CD membership during today’s plenary.

In a joint statement from the Informal Group of Observer States (IGOS) and through several national statements, observer states called for the appointment of a special coordinator on the topic of membership expansion. Speaking on behalf of the IGOS, Ambassador Evan Garcia of the Philippines noted that the group was formed in 2009 to more effectively raise the collective concerns of observer states on membership expansion and to encourage and facilitate their participation in the Conference. Ambassador Garcia also argued that the group’s call for the appointment of a special coordinator is merely to commence discussion on this issue and not to prejudge or presume any particular outcome. Ambassador Andresen-Guimaraes of Portugal argued that enlargement of the CD needs to be seen as an asset, rather than a potential liability. She believed that more members will make the CD more inclusive, transparent, and democratic.  The Portuguese ambassador highlighted that the simple fact that countries still have an interest in joining the CD, despite its current deadlock, shows that it is still seen as relevant.

Several CD delegations, including Brazil, the European Union, Bulgaria, Chile, the Eastern European Group, and Mexico noted that the rules of procedure stipulate that the membership of the Conference will be reviewed at regular intervals. Ambassador Macedo Soares of Brazil noted that observer states have not only been showing their interest in the work of the CD, but have also accompanied the discussions and have made regular interventions and contributions. He argued that given the rule of consensus, the CD does not have to worry about maintaining even geographic representation as other UN fora need to do when there is a possibility of voting.

The Brazilian ambassador encouraged the CD to engage in this debate and advocated for an expansion of the membership, arguing that it would “bring a richer and broader participation” to the Conference. Most speakers agreed with this conclusion. The European Unionreiterated its longstanding attachment to the enlargement of the CD membership and supported the call made by the informal group of observer states (IGOS) to appoint a special coordinator on the issue in 2011. This was echoed by Bulgaria, the Eastern European Group, Ireland, Chile, and Mexico.  The European Union, the IGOS, and Bulgaria suggested the appointment of Ambassador Soares Macedo of Brazil as a potential coordinator.

While agreeing that the CD should regularly review the issue of expansion, the Chinese delegation argued that it was of importance to seek to “identify a solution acceptable to all parties and in line with the consensus rule.”

Turkey’s delegation, on the other hand, argued that it wished to see that the CD revitalized with its present membership. Ambassador Demiralp believed that the CD should instead maintain focus on its main task, to come up with a programme of work and start negotiations.

Notes from the gallery
As the second part of the 2011 session gets underway, the CD will devote the coming week to more informal thematic debates on fissile materials and negative security assurances. However, agreeing on a programme of work or starting concrete negotiations in the CD still does not appear to be likely this year.  The lack of progress and the waste of time, resources, and opportunities are serious concerns for not only CD delegations but for all other states and members of the public as well. Delegations in the CD have failed to carry out its task and it is obvious that the world needs a more flexible structure that would allow for progress to take place.

Since the deadlock started, many delegations have given the CD “one more year” to make progress. Over a decade later, delegations have still not managed to get the CD closer to breakthrough and we have to ask ourselves what use “one more year” would actually do. As the 2011 session moves along, delegations must ask themselves if anything in the CD can be expected to change during the remainder of this year or even in 2012.

People all over the world are expecting their governments to deliver concrete disarmament measures in line with existing commitments, including article VI of the NPT. That cannot wait another year.

Next plenary meeting
The next plenary meeting will be held on Tuesday, 24 May at 10:00 am.