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Statement by Hou Zhitong,
Chinese Ambassador to the Conference on Disarmament
2 February 1995
(CD/PV. 694)
(Translated from Chinese)
Mr. President, first of all, may I, on behalf of the Chinese delegation, congratulate you on taking up the presidency at the inception of the 1995 session of the Conference on Disarmament? I am fully confident that as an outstanding representative of Italy and with your rich experience and extraordinary ability you will successfully accomplish this important mission. I am very pleased to not that the friendly cooperation between the Governments and peoples of China and Italy is further developing.
As the CD session begins this year, may I also take the opportunity to greet all the delegations present here? Under your guidance, Mr. President, the Chinese delegation will as always fully cooperate with other delegations in the joint efforts aimed at securing further achievements in all aspects of the CD's work this year. At the same time I would also like to thank your predecessor, Ambassador Sirous Nasseri of Iran, for his contribution in bringing last year's CD session into a smooth close.
Please allow me to avail myself of this opportunity to bid farewell and express good wishes to our colleagues who have recently left their posts here or are to leave soon. They are Ambassador Wagenmakers of the Netherlands, Ambassador Benhima of Morocco, Ambassador Tin Kyaw Hlaing of Myanmar, Ambassador Brotodiningrat of Indonesia and Ambassador Lampreia of Brazil. Meanwhile, I would like to extend a warm welcome to Ambassador J. Ramaker and Ambassador U Aye, who took up their posts in the CD not long ago, and wish them every success.
This year, 1995, is a year of importance which marks the fiftieth anniversary of the end of the Second World War and the founding of the United Nations. As the international community as a whole celebrates this historic date, it can never be forgotten that the twentieth century unfortunately twice witnessed world wars and that mankind suffered the unprecedented scourges of war. The protracted cold war afterwards placed the people of the world under the shadow of a nuclear war for too long. In the second half of this century the international situation has undergone profound changes. Nowadays, not only can a new world war be avoided, but the possibilities are also growing for the complete prohibition and thorough destruction of nuclear weapons and for freeing mankind forever from the threat of a nuclear war. Hence the efforts for nuclear disarmament and for the prevention of nuclear war still remain the common task of high priority for the international community.
The Chinese Government has always stood for the complete prohibition and thorough destruction of all weapons of mass destruction. For this purpose His Excellency Mr. Qian Qichen, Vice-Premier and Minister of Foreign Affairs of China, reiterated solemnly the principled position of the Chinese Government on nuclear disarmament and made new proposals in this respect at the current session of the United Nations General Assembly. He emphasized that, in the view of the Chinese Government, a convention on the complete prohibition of nuclear weapons should be concluded in the same way as the conventions completely banning all biological and chemical weapons. With a view to ultimately ridding mankind of the threat of nuclear war and gradually achieving a nuclear-weapon-free world, the Chinese Government put forward the following concrete suggestions: that all countries which possess nuclear weapons should pledge unconditionally not to be the first to use nuclear weapons and immediately start negotiations to conclude a treaty prohibiting the first use of nuclear weapons against each other; that efforts for the establishment of nuclear-weapon-free zones should be supported and that all nuclear powers should undertake not to use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against any non-nuclear-weapon State or nuclear-weapon-free zone; that negotiations should be pursued earnestly with a view to concluding a comprehensive nuclear weapon test-ban treaty not later than 1996; that the principal nuclear powers should implement their existing nuclear disarmament treaties as scheduled and go on to cut back their nuclear stockpiles drastically; that negotiations should be undertaken to conclude a convention banning the production of fissile material for nuclear-weapon production purposes; that the convention on the complete prohibition of nuclear weapons should be concluded under which all nuclear-weapon States should assume the obligation to destroy all their nuclear weapons under effective international supervision; and that international cooperation in the peaceful use of nuclear energy should be vigorously promoted simultaneously with efforts to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons and to step up the nuclear disarmament process.
The above points make up an integrated and interrelated international nuclear disarmament programme and process. The Chinese Government is confident that in the twenty-first century mankind will certainly be able to eliminate all nuclear weapons completely and harness nuclear energy fully to enhance the welfare of all countries and peoples. China is ready to join other nuclear-weapon States as well as numerous non-nuclear-weapon States to blaze the way towards this lofty goal.
On the very first day when it came into possession of nuclear weapons China unilaterally and unconditionally commited itself never to be the first to use nuclear weapons and has since consistently called for the conclusion of an international treaty prohibiting the first use of nuclear weapons against one another by all nuclear-weapon States. It is obvious that currently the conditions are ripe for the negotiation and conclusion of such a treaty. China has formally proposed to other nuclear-weapon States that such negotiations should be started immediately and has presented a draft treaty to this end. We believe that the early conclusion of the proposed treaty will greatly reduce the danger of nuclear war and contribute to world peace, security and development. In this respect a new development is encouraging. In September 1994 the heads of State of China and the Russian Federation issued a joint declaration committing them not to target strategic nuclear weapons on each other. The declaration reiterated the undertaking of both sides not to be the first to use force against each other, and especially not to be the first to use nuclear weapons against each other. They also declared that each side would adopt measures so that strategic nuclear weapons under its control were not targeted on the other. It was indeed an event of historic significance for China and Russia, two nuclear-weapon States and permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, to solemnly assume the obligation not to be the first to use nuclear weapons against each other. We believe that this initiative will pave the way for the conclusion of a multilateral convention against the first use of nuclear weapons.
This year, 1995, marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the entry into force of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. The NPT review and extension Conference is now drawing near. China holds that in spite of certain drawbacks the NPT remains one of the most universal and important international legal instruments in arms control, playing a positive role in preventing the proliferation of nuclear weapons and promoting nuclear disarmament. Therefore China supports the smooth extension of the Treaty and will participate in the review and extension Conference actively and constructively, making its own contribution to the success of the Conference. We welcome the recent announcements by Algeria, Argentina, Ukraine and other countries on accession to the non-proliferation Treaty.
The negotiations on a comprehensive nuclear-test-ban treaty are a focus of the work before the Conference on Disarmament. China has all along attached great importance to and participated actively in the negotiations. The political sincerity and constructive position of the Chinese Government towards the CTBT negotiations is firm and unshakable and I would like to reiterate here that China stands for the conclusion of a comprehensive, effective and universal treaty banning nuclear weapon test explosions no later than 1996. We have noted with pleasure that in the past year, under the able leadership of Ambassador Marin Bosch, Chairman of the NTB Ad Hoc Committee, the negotiations have got off to a good start and have so far achieved promising headway with a substantive CTBT rolling text before us. Meanwhile, all the parties concerned have through their intensive endeavors demonstrated a positive and cooperative attitude in the negotiations. Here I would like to express our gratitude to the Chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee, Ambassador Marin Bosch, as well as the chairmen of its two working groups, Ambassador Dembinski and Ambassador Hoffmann, for their great efforts and valuable contributions. We believe that under the leadership of the newly appointed Chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee, Ambassador Dembinski, the CTBT negotiations are bound to achieve even more breakthroughs in 1995.
Security assurances for non-nuclear-weapon States constitute another issue of importance and urgency on the CD agenda. As the Secretary-General of the United Nations said in his message to the CD the day before yesterday, "there is no objection, in the Conference on Disarmament, to the idea of an international convention to assure non-nuclear-weapon States against the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons", and the solution to this issue should "fully take into account the legitimate demands of non-nuclear-weapon States for stronger international and legally binding security assurances". The Chinese Government fully understands and supports the demand of all non-nuclear-weapon States for security assurances. Therefore China has already unequivocally committed itself without any condition not to use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear-weapon States or nuclear-weapon-free zones, and has proposed that international legal instruments to this effect should be concluded at the earliest possible date. China supports the position of the Non-Aligned-Movement that security assurances for non-nuclear-weapon States should be settled through a legally binding approach. At present, an urgent solution to the issue of negative security assurances bears profound immediate significance. In line with such principled positions China, as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, also adopts a constructive and cooperative attitude towards the appropriate settlement of the issue of positive security assurances for non-nuclear-weapon States. China has all along believed that security assurances, whether positive or negative, should be provided to all the non-nuclear-weapon States. It goes without saying that this standpoint means China is also forthcoming in offering security assurances to the non-nuclear-weapon States which are parties to the non-proliferation Treaty. Hence the Chinese delegation has demonstrated its support in a timely manner for the formulation of a draft protocol on security assurances which was proposed not long ago by Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Kenya, Mexico, Mongolia, Myanmar, Peru, Sri Lanka and Venezuela in the Conference on Disarmament. Today, I am authorized to reaffirm this constructive position of China. Thanks to the vigorous leadership of its Chairman, Ambassador Guillaume, whose active and enterprising spirit was highly appreciated, last year witnessed an NSA Ad Hoc Committee making further efforts and conducting plenty of work. We sincerely hope that substantive progress will be registered this year in this important area under the new chairmanship of the Ad Hoc Committee.
Considerable progress has been attained in the field of international disarmament and arms control after years of joint efforts by all States. Faced with the new challenges and opportunities in strengthening international peace and security, the community of all nations must continue to redouble its efforts. China, as always, will make its own contributions.
Mr. President, I would like to express my gratitude to you for the kind words you have just spoken about me. I take these words as an expression of friendship for my country. I myself have been serving as Ambassador for disarmament affairs of the People's Republic of China and head of the Chinese delegation for more than five years. Before long, I shall leave this post and return to my motherland. During these past five years I have had the honor to work with you, Mr. President, and the other distinguished representatives, and have benefited enormously from your rich diplomatic experience and outstanding skills and wisdom. In working together, all my colleagues and all other delegations, as well as the Secretary-General, Mr. Petrovsky, the Deputy Secretary-General, Mr. Bensmail, and other friends in the secretariat have lent me tremendous support and assistance, for which I express heartfelt gratitude. I wish all friends and colleagues here every success and I will also cherish these extraordinary five years we have been working together. I hope and believe that in the new international situation the Conference on Disarmament will play an even greater role in safeguarding world peace and international security. At the same time, Mr. President, I would like to assure you and all the others that wherever I go I will continue to work assiduously to serve the lofty cause of international peace and security and to promote friendship and cooperation among peoples of all States. I am grateful to you all.
This
material is produced independently for NTI by the James Martin
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International Studies and does not necessarily reflect the
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