Reaching Critical Will

Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)

Conference on Disarmament

General Assembly First Committee

UN Disarmament Commission

Special Session on Disarmament

Statement by Ms. Tehmina Janjua, Acting Permanent Representative in the Plenary of the Conference on Disarmament on Prevention of Arms Race in Outer Space (PAROS); (Agenda Item 3), Geneva, 13 February 2007

Mr. President,

It is good to see you chairing the CD debate on the important issues of PAROS & NSAs. Our statement today will focus on PAROS. We intend to speak next week on question of NSAs.

Yesterday in the informal discussions led by Ambassador Meyer, we outlined our position on PAROS. We will today briefly reiterate key principles.

Mr. President,

The growing dependence of the international community on space for economic development and for security underscores the importance of the peaceful uses of outer space. The immense potential of space in communication technologies and their impact on the lives of people in the remotest part of the world is one clear example of the peaceful uses of space for the benefit of all. It is in the common interest of mankind to explore and use outer space for peaceful purposes.

The UN Charter obligates us not to use or threaten to use force in international relations. This obligations includes activities in space.

Concerns about the weaponization of outer space are growing. The consequences of placing weapons in space, if we fail to prevent weaponization, are immense. We believe that measures to prevent an arms race in outer space would help avert a serious danger to global peace and security.

The CD, being the sole negotiating disarmament forum, has the primary responsibility to negotiate and conclude a multilateral treaty on the prevention of an arms race in outer space.

Mr. President,

The 1967 Outer Space Treaty, of which we are commemorating the 40th anniversary this year and 15 other multilateral agreements do not fully address the gravity of the issue. These instruments also do not reflect advances in the space technology.

We share the majority’s conclusion that the Conference must respond to and fill the gap in existing international legal instruments, which are inadequate to prevent weaponization of outer space.

In this context, we thank China and Russia for the third, revised and amended version of the “Compilation of Comments and Suggestions to the CD PAROS Working Paper (CD/1679)”. We are convinced that this updated inclusive document will help to be more focused. The documentation available to the CD on PAROS is impressive. This has been largely due to the commitment and continued efforts on moving discussions forward by China and Russia. We also thank Canada for its useful inputs.

Mr. President,

Work done in the CD and the seminars held in and outside the CD especially by UNIDIR are ample evidence of the importance and gravity of the issue. They also provide sufficient material to commence negotiations on PAROS, once we finalize the programme of work of the Conference. In this regard, the A-5 proposal remains a valid basis for CD’s balanced and comprehensive programme of work.

UNGA resolution 61/58 has once again called on the CD to establish an Ad Hoc Committee and negotiate multilateral agreement on PAROS. The outline of a treaty presented by the Russian delegation today is an illustration on what this treaty may look like.

We believe that it is our obligation to respond to UNGA’s call and start work on PAROS in all earnest.

I thank you, Mr. President.