FC 2004 Indonesia EOV L.56

Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)

Conference on Disarmament

General Assembly First Committee

UN Disarmament Commission

Special Session on Disarmament

Indonesia

Explanation of vote L.56

Mr. Chairman,

My delegation has joined consensus on draft resolution L.56 concerning Bilateral Strategic Nuclear Arms Reduction and the New Strategic Framework. However, compared to the previous resolution under the same title, we view that the current text has included some new elements to which my delegation has some reservations, in particular OP.4

Indonesia continues to reaffirm its principled position on nuclear disarmament and the inter-linked issue of non-proliferation. We stress that the importance of the efforts aiming at non-proliferation should be parallel to simultaneous endeavours for nuclear disarmament. We would also like to express our concern at the threat to humanity derived from the continued existence of nuclear weapons and of their possible use or threat of use.

We have taken note of the signing of the Treaty on Strategic Offensive between the Russian Federation and the United States on 24 May 2002 and its entry into force on 1 June 2003. We deem it necessary to reiterate that reduction in deployments and in operational status cannot substitute for irreversible cuts in, and the total elimination of nuclear weapons. The United States and Russia have missed the opportunity to verifiably dismantle their still massive Cold War era nuclear arsenals and reduce the role of nuclear weapons in their military strategies. Moreover, new nuclear weapons and possibly renewed nuclear testing are on the horizon.

While these reductions are to be welcomed, in our view, they do not fulfill the unequivocal undertaking under Article VI of the NPT to accomplish the total elimination of their nuclear arsenals leading to nuclear disarmament. We are aware of the fact that there are still about 30,000 nuclear weapons and the international community remains uncertain at the time-frame regarding dismantlement and destruction of these nuclear weapons.