Explanation of Vote on L.34 by the U.S. on behalf of the P-3

Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)

Conference on Disarmament

General Assembly First Committee

UN Disarmament Commission

Special Session on Disarmament

EOV given after the vote on L.34 Nuclear-weapon-free Southern Hemisphere and adjacent areas,
by the U.S. on behalf of the P-3.

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Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I have asked for the floor on behalf of the United States of America, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and France in order to explain our position on draft resolution L.34 entitled ‘Nuclear-weapon-free Southern Hemisphere and adjacent areas."

As in previous years, our three delegations have voted "no" on the draft resolution, for it still does not adequately respond to our essential problem and also contains a fundamental ambiguity. Please allow me to recall the reasons. We remain concerned about the draft resolution’s underlying ideas to prepare the ground for the Southern Hemisphere to become a nuclear-weapon-free zone. Given that the Southern Hemisphere’s entire land mass (except for a few small islands) is already included within existing nuclear-weapon-free zones, the sole area that remains to be covered is the high seas. Some delegations state that this is not the aim of the draft resolution. They point Out that the draft refers to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. But, if the new zone will not cover the high, seas, what will it add to the zones that already exist? From this reflection we are forced to conclude that, at least for some, the goal really is to create a new zone that would cover some international waters. Such a step would be contrary to international law and would therefore be unacceptable to all delegations that are committed to respecting the Law of the Sea.

Mr. Chairman, I would like to emphasize that our vote on this draft resolution should not in any way be interpreted as calling into question our deep attachment to the treaties of Tlatelolco, Rarotonga, Pelindaba, and the Antarctic. We likewise have no objection in principle to the establishment of new nuclear-weapon-free zones that could make an important contribution to regional as well as global security, provided that they are supported by all States of the region concerned and are the subject of appropriate treaties, including general assurances provided by the IAEA.

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