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Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan addresses the CD

On Thursday morning, the Conference on Disarmament (CD) heard a statement from Ms. Chinami Nishimura, the Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan. She talked about 2010 as a critical juncture toward the realization of a world free of nuclear weapons and argued that the CD must get down to work and fulfill its primary role as the single multilateral disarmament negotiating forum of the world.

Practical and concrete measures for nuclear disarmament
As the only country to ever experience atomic bombings, Ms. Nishimura referred to Japan’s moral responsibility to take the lead in the pursuit of the elimination of nuclear weapons. She outlined the measures that Japan has taken to this end, such as submitting the General Assembly resolution A/RES/64/47 on “Renewed determination towards the total elimination of nuclear weapons,” promoting the entry to force of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) and initiatives to universalize the IAEA Additional Protocol, and supporting disarmament and non-proliferation education in civil society.

Ms. Nishimura emphasized that in order to eliminate nuclear weapons, practical and concrete measures must be implemented. She highlighted three such steps;

- Concrete nuclear disarmament steps by all nuclear weapon states in a transparent, irreversible, and verifiable manner;
- Achieving entry into force by the CTBT; and
- The commencement and conclusion of negotiations on a fissile material cut-off treaty in the CD.

Ms. Nishimura also stated that Japan and Australia will pursue a package proposal of practical nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation measures for the upcoming NPT Review Conference in May. She indicated that this package will take into account the report of theInternational Commission on Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament.

Next meeting
The next plenary meeting is scheduled for Friday, 5 March at 10:00 AM, when the Conference will hear a statement of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan, Mr. Kanat Saudabayev.