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UAE to Adhere to Transparent Nuclear Policy

This was stated recently by Hani Mohamed bin Huwaidin, Member of the UAE delegation to the63rd session of the United Nations General Assembly, before the Thematic Discussion of the Disarmament and International Security Committee on the issue of nuclear weapons.

In his speech, Huwaidin referred to UAE’s nuclear energy development programme for peaceful purposes which, he said, “demonstrated its adherence to the principle of transparency and sets an example to the region.”

He also called for the “full and balanced implementation of all provisions of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), including the balancing of disarmament and non-proliferation in accordance with Article 6 of the Treaty.”

This, he said, “requires, as a priority, the engagement of nuclear states in immediate and serious negotiations with a view to the gradual reduction of their existing nuclear weapons and the change of the uses of these weapons towards peaceful purposes within a specific time frame.”

He stressed the importance of “reaffirming the leading role of the IAEA, the only international body empowered to monitoring nuclear activities and programmes of (nuclear) states and to resolving the outstanding issues.”

“We call upon developed countries to support the legitimate need of the developing countries to acquire nuclear energy, allowing them to obtain nuclear materials and equipment, to the most permissible extent, as well as scientific information and technology for peaceful purposes,” Huwaidin stated.

He urged Iran to continue its cooperation with the IAEA and the international community in order to dispel fears and doubts surrounding the nature and objectives of its nuclear programme.

Huwaidin reiterated UAE’s appeal to make the Middle East a zone free of weapons of mass destruction and emphasise the importance of demanding Israel to ensure its compliance to the resolution on the Middle East adopted by the NPT Review Conference 1995 and relevant UN resolutions which call for the placement of all its nuclear installations under IAEA safeguards and its unconditional accession to the NPT like all countries in the region.

He said the continued quantitative and qualitative development of existing nuclear weapons and their delivery systems by some nuclear states and the quest of some non-nuclear states to acquire some of these dangerous weapons constitute a flagrant violation of the treaty of nuclear disarmament as well as the non-proliferation regime.

“They also contribute to undermining confidence in the system of international relations, which, in turn, threatens the maintenance of regional and international peace and security,” he remarked.

Huwaidin stressed that all parties of the international community, without exception, must ensure their full adherence and compliance with the principles of the multilateral system as well as the principles of all relevant treaties and international arrangements, in order to ensure the achievement of the objectives of vertical and horizontal non-proliferation of nuclear weapons.

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