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The international sea-bed area should be used exclusively for peaceful purposes, and to ensure their realization, an appropriate and effective international regime should be jointly worked out by all countries. This is entirely necessary. Now, some people have proposed to include the question of the prohibition of nuclear tests and the emplacement of nuclear weapons in the sea-bed area into the international regime. In this regard, we wish to state our position. It is well known that now the two superpowers are possessing large quantities of nuclear weapons. They ahve not only manufactured and stockpiled large quantities of nuclear weapons within their own countries, but have also set up nuclear bases on the territories of other countries. Their warships carrying nuclear weapons are plying the oceans of the world and their airplanes carrying nuclear weapons are flying over the air space of other countries. Under the circumstances, to advocate prohibition of nuclear tests in the international sea-bed area is in effect designed to enable the two superpowers to continue monopolizing nuclear weapons, control other countries and tie the hands of peace-loving countries. This is what we cannot accept...
Now, the warships of the superpowers carrying nuclear weapons are docking, plying and navigating the oceans of the world, and are making nuclear threat and nuclear blackmail to the peoples of all countries. Under such circumstances, we should first of all prohibit the activities of all the nuclear-powered submarines in the international sea-bed area and in the sea-bed area of other states. It is not enough to merely prohibit the emplacement of nuclear weapons and the carrying out of nuclear tests in the sea-bed area. In particular, the prohibition of nuclear tests in the sea-bed area is of little practical significance. On the contrary, it would create a false sense of security. This is what we cannot agree [to]...
[Chinese proposed language for inclusion in the Committee's report:]
- The activities of all nuclear-powered submarines in the international
sea-bed area and in the sea-bed area of other states are prohibited. The
emplacement of nuclear weapons and all other weapons in the international
sea-bed and in the sea-bed area of other states is prohibited.
This
material is produced independently for NTI by the James Martin
Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Monterey Institute of
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opinions of and has not been independently verified by NTI or
its directors, officers, employees, agents. Copyright © 2007 by
MIIS.
