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Statement by New York, 21 —23 September 2005
At the outset, allow me to express my delegation’s felicitations to you on your election as President of the Conference on Facilitating the Entry Into Force of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT). I am confident that under your wise guidance and leadership, we will be able to achieve constructive results in our deliberations, and I assure you of our full support and cooperation. Let me also avail myself of this opportunity to extend our felicitations to the other members of the General Committee. Mr. President. I would like to congratulate Ambassador Deborah Stokes, Permanent Representative of Australia in Vienna, for the excellent and patient manner in which she has conducted the informal consultations in Vienna on the Final Draft Declaration of the Conference. My delegation’s sincere gratitude and deep appreciation also go to Ambassador Wolfgang Hoffman for his excellent work and dedication in leading the Provisional Technical Secretariat. I further congratulate and warmly welcome the new Executive Secretary of the Preparatory Commission of the CTBTO Ambassador Tibor Toth in our midst. My delegation is confident that he will continue with the tradition of leading the Provisional Technical Secretariat with a high degree of professionalism. For this important Conference, Ambassador Tibor Tôth has already demonstrated his professionalism by presenting us the comprehensive report which provides useful background for our work Mr. President, In addressing this Conference, I would like to associate myself with the statement made by Malaysia on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement. We welcome the Final Declaration of this Conference as well as measures to promote the entry into force of the CTBT. It is already nine years since the CTBT opened for signature on 24 September 1996. My delegation reiterates the importance of a universal, internationally and effectively verifiable Treaty as a measure to enhance international peace and security. Consequently, we note with concern that the said Treaty has not yet entered into force, but gratified that it is now approaching the status of a universal Treaty. As a signatory to the CTBT, Indonesia shares the view that its prohibition of nuclear test explosions anywhere constitutes an effective measure towards nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation. Furthermore, as a country listed in Annex 2 of the Treaty, Indonesia is aware of its responsibility and the importance of sustained progress towards ratification. In this regard, Indonesia will continue the process of ratification that is still underway. To facilitate the said process, an Inter-Agency Working Group has already been established and is working toward this end as democratically as possible. However, it is also worth mentioning that at the moment, Indonesia, as a matter of priority, is concentrating its efforts on accomplishing reforms and democratization with a view to creating good governance, fighting corruption, restructuring the economy, creating jobs, eradicating poverty and building the peace in Aceh. My delegation believes that cessation of all nuclear weapon test explosions and the production of all nuclear explosive devices will effectively pave the way to both nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation by constraining the development and qualitative improvement of nuclear weapons and providing an effective legal obstacle to the development of new types of nuclear weapons, In the light of this, my delegation further believes that the universal ratification of, and adherence to the CTBT, especially by nuclear-weapon states and States with nuclear capabilities, is an absolute prerequisite for fully realizing the objectives contained therein. Mr. President For decades, Indonesia has demonstrated its serious commitment to prohibiting nuclear testing for military purposes and to supporting the inalienable right of all States to nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. In this regard, within the framework of the Southeast Asia ~ (the Bangkok Treaty), Indonesia has implemented its obligations, among others, not to develop, manufacture or otherwise acquire, possess or have control over nuclear weapons; station nuclear weapons; or test or use of nuclear weapons anywhere inside or outside the Treaty zone. To demonstrate its commitment as an accountable signatory state to the CTBT, Indonesia has continuously worked with the Provisional Technical Secretariat (PTS) of the CTBTO with a view to promoting the importance of the entry into force of the Treaty and following-up its activities. For example, six auxiliary seismological stations have been placed in different locations in Indonesia with the assistance of the technical expertise of the CTBTO Apart from that, in December 2004, Indonesia organized a national seminar on CTBT back-to-back with the International Data Centre Regional Training Course for National Data Centre Technical Staff. As a country that was severely devastated
by the tsunami, Indonesia fully supports the decision taken by the
Preparatory Commission at its Special Session to task the PTS to explore
the tsunami early warning system. Besides its primary function, this
is the scientific and civil benefits that we could gain from the verification
system conducted by the CIBTO in conformity with the Treaty. My delegation is of the view that disarmament and non-proliferation are imperative in the elimination of weapons of mass destruction. The continued existence of such weapons, particularly nuclear weapons, poses a grave threat to international peace and security. Therefore, we deplore the omission of these pertinent issues from the outcome document of the recent UN Summit, another dismal failure following the NPT Review Conference last April. This is another black eye on our efforts to promote nuclear disarmament and non¬proliferation as an important agenda of the international community. Before concluding, I would like to reiterate Indonesia’s commitment to the enhancement of international peace and security by establishing a global nuclear-test ban regime. Consequently, it is our fervent hope that this Conference will accelerate the early entry into force of the CTBT. I thank you Mr. President.
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