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Negotiations: a tool of political will

Beatrice Fihn and Ray Acheson | Reaching Critical Will of WILPF

On Tuesday, 16 February, the First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belarus, Mr. Igor Petrishenko, addressed the Conference on Disarmament (CD). The CD also heard statements by the new CD President, Ambassador Mikhail Khvostov of Belarus about the programme of work, and by Ambassador Akio Suda of Japan, who thanked the outgoing president and welcomed Ambassador Khostov.

Highlights

The First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belarus reaffirmed his country’s commitment to achieving a nuclear weapon free world and argued that nuclear powers should take new measures to stop further modernization of nuclear weapons and to decrease reliance on nuclear weapons in their military doctrines.

The incoming CD president, Ambassador Mikhail Khvostov of Belarus, made a brief introductory comment outlining his approach to reaching consensus on a programme of work.

In order to remind the CD that the world is indeed watching it, Reaching Critical Will invites members of civil society and academic institutions to [email protected]" contribute to the CD Report with their views on the discussions. In this report, Mr. Dan Plesch, Director of the Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy at the School of Oriental and African Studies of London University shares some of his thoughts on today’s plenary meeting.

Programme of work
Ambassador Mikhail Khvostov of Belarus took over the presidency of the CD today and made a short statement about the ongoing negotiations of a programme of work. While saying that last Thursday’s informal consultation led to food for thought, he explained that due to the “differing views on what the basis for work of the Conference might be,” bilateral consultations and meetings with regional groups had been initiated in order to find potential acceptable amendments on a programme of work. He indicated that he remains “optimistic in thinking that the patience that we are showing at this stage will be rewarded and that we will be in a position to come up with a compromise basis that will enable us to move forward in substantive work.”

Political will
In his address to the CD, the First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belarus, Mr. Igor Petrishenko, described political will as “a precondition of all future decisions in the field of disarmament,” and negotiations as “a tool of the political will”. Highlighting the “lost” decade for disarmament caused in part by “reversive” tendencies that “seriously damaged the existing system of international relations,” including rising global military expenditure, Mr. Petrishenko called for efforts to improve existing mechanisms and legal tools rather than belittling their value or blocking their initiatives.

In this regard, he called on the CD to “enhance positive momentum” in its activities; manifest its members’ political will; to adopt a programme of work based on CD/1864; and to begin negotiating a fissile material cut-off treaty (FMCT) without delay. He argued that an FMCT will create favourable conditions for the international community “to set a total ban of nuclear weapons as a realistic medium term goal.”

Pointing out that Belarus “voluntarily renounced an opportunity” to possess nuclear weapons and completed the withdrawal of such weapons from its territory in 1996, Mr. Petrishenko welcomed efforts by the United States and Russia to agree to a follow-on treaty to theStrategic Arms Reductions Treaty (START). However, he also expressed hope that the conclusion of such treaty would be followed with further reduction of US and Russian nuclear arsenals. He suggested that nuclear weapon states could also: decrease the number of nuclear warheads and delivery means; stop further modernization nuclear weapons; renounce their reliance on nuclear weapons in their military doctrines; and seriously dedicate themselves to the idea of a nuclear weapon free world.

Notes from the gallery
Reaching Critical Will welcomes Mr. Petrishenko’s call for nuclear weapon states to not only reduce the numbers of their nuclear weapons but also to cease all plans to modernize their arsenals and to renounce their reliance on nuclear weapons in security doctrines. If nuclear weapons are to be eliminated, those who possess them should no longer invest in nuclear weapon production, design, or infrastructure.

While CD delegates are still unable to adopt a programme of work and commence negotiations, civil society continues trying to move the disarmament debate forward. There might not be many representatives from civil society up in the gallery, but we must not forget that the world is actually still watching and that we still expect the CD to get down to work and negotiate disarmament treaties.

Since many members of civil society cannot take part in the regular plenary meetings, Reaching Critical Will would like to give nuclear disarmament advocates the opportunity to share their views on the CD, its lack of progress, and its current agenda items in a new section of the CD Report, “Notes from the world”. Please email Beatrice Finh at [email protected] if you would like to participate.

Notes from the world
This week, a group of students from the Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy at London University are visiting the different institutions within the United Nations, and their Director, Mr. Dan Plesch, took the time to attend the CD plenary meeting and discuss how his work on disarmament relates to this multilateral negotiating body.

Dan Plesch ([email protected]) Director of the Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy at the School of Oriental and African Studies, London University, writes:

The speech of Belarus’ Deputy Foreign Minister was a refreshing reminder of the experiences of a state that has suffered terribly in war and gone to participate in a wide range of disarmament achievements. At least for a visitor from London University, passing through Geneva with a group of Masters students on study tour. I took the opportunity to discuss a new idea for disarmament, SCRAP (strategic concept for regulation of arms possession and proliferation), designed to globalize existing disarmament agreements. For some delegates, visibly frustrated at the logjam in the talk, SCRAP has come a breath of fresh air, but whether it will fade away as deceptive breeze on a hot and humid day, or will gather strength with the spring remains to be seen. You can find more information about SCRAP and other issues that the students work on, such as a Middle East Weapons of Mass Destruction Free Zone project on the website of the Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy.

Next meeting
The next plenary meeting of the CD is scheduled for Thursday, 18 February at 10:00 AM.