Opens on Theme ‘For Peace and Development: Disarm Now!’
UN Secretary-General [centre] at the close of the opening ceremony of the 62nd DPI/NGO Conference in Mexico City Location: Mexico City, Mexico http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2009/ngo677.doc.htm
MEXICO CITY, 9 September -- Kicking off the sixty-second annual gathering of non-governmental organizations this morning, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon made a passionate call to States parties to the 1968 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty to negotiate in good faith a convention to rid the world of its nuclear and conventional arsenal and to civil society to pressure leaders worldwide to stem the more than $1 trillion global weapons industry.
Mr. Ban said the Presidents of the Russian Federation and the United States had made a good start to create a nuclear-weapons-free world when they recently joined forces to seek to reduce their respective nuclear arsenals and delivery vehicles in accordance with their obligations under Article VI of the NPT. At Mr.
Ban’s request, the Security Council would hold a summit meeting on 24 September, chaired by United States President Barack Obama, to address nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear disarmament. On 21 September, the world would celebrate the International Day of Peace dedicated to the “We Must Disarm” Campaign. And next March, President Obama would convene a meeting in Washington on nuclear security. Now was the time for all stakeholders to build on that momentum.
“There can be no development without peace and no peace without development. Disarmament can provide the means for both,” he said.
“Global zero” ‑‑ a plan launched by some of the world’s former leading military experts in December 2008 to phase out nuclear weapons ‑‑ offered hope for the future, as did the vows of the Presidents of the United States and the Russian Federation to cut the nuclear stockpiles of their respective nations. But much more must be done to bolster that process and ensure it moved forward. A coherent strategy and plan to lay the groundwork for genuine disarmament was needed, she said dismissing as “nonsense” the claims of nuclear weapon States that is was premature to negotiate a nuclear weapons convention.
Rather than rely on the United States Government to dictate disarmament affairs, the world could in fact take a different tack, he said, suggesting that a world conference be held to draft a treaty, outside the United Nations and the Geneva Conference, to eliminate nuclear arsenals. There were hopeful signs in that regard. In London and Washington, there was talk of a nuclear-weapons-free world. In October 2008, the Secretary-General had issued a five-point proposal to achieve nuclear disarmament and prevent nuclear proliferation. In April, President Obama had relaunched the long dormant negotiations with the Russian Federation on the Treaty on the Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms (START).
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Obama’s Prague Speech: Nuclear Disarmament and a New International Order
Obama’s Prague Speech: Nuclear Disarmament and a New International OrderObama’s speech in Prague is among the most important events of this year. Global nuclear disarmament will not be easy, particularly in the Middle East. It’s hard to imagine India, Pakistan and chief amongst them Israel, give up their nuclear arms, but it’s worth trying. Iranians also should understand that this is the best path to achieve nuclear energy and make sure neighbors would not go after nuclear arsenal.
speech:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKSn1SXjj2s
The Conference will reconvene in the afternoon, September 11, 2009, to hold a roundtable discussion titled “Zero Nuclear Weapons, Zero Weapons of Mass Destruction: Why, How, When?”
http://www.un.org/dpi/ngosection/conference/
