For Immediate Release
June 20, 2005
Joint Statement by the European Union and United States on the Joint Program of Work on the Nonproliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction
Proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and their delivery
systems continue to be a preeminent threat to international peace and
security. This global challenge needs to be tackled individually and
collectively, and requires an effective global response. We are fully
committed to support in that respect the important role of the United
Nations Security Council and other key UN institutions.
The United States and the European Union are steadfast partners in
the fight against the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and
will undertake several new initiatives to strengthen our cooperation
and coordination in this important arena, even as we enhance our
ongoing efforts.
Building Global Support for Nonproliferation: The European Union
and the United States will enhance information sharing, discuss
assessments of proliferation risks, and work together to broaden global
support for and participation in nonproliferation endeavors. We will
increase transparency about our nonproliferation dialogues with other
countries to ensure, to the extent possible consistency in our
nonproliferation messages.
We reaffirm our willingness to work together to implement and
strengthen key arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation
treaties, agreements and commitments that ban the proliferation of WMD
and their delivery systems. In particular we underline the importance
of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), the
Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention and the Chemical Weapons
Convention. We will increase our effort to promote, individually or,
where appropriate, jointly, the universalisation of these Treaties and
Conventions and the adherence to the Hague Code of Conduct against the
proliferation of ballistic missiles.
Reinforcing the NPT: The EU and the US reaffirm that the NPT is
central to preventing the spread of nuclear weapons. The EU and the US
stress the urgency to maintain the authority and the integrity of the
Treaty. To that end, the EU and the U.S. recommit to fulfill our
obligations under the Treaty while working together in order to
strengthen it. We will evaluate lessons learned from the 2005 Review
Conference and continue to stress the importance of compliance with and
universal adherence to the NPT.
Recognizing the Importance of the Biological Threat: The EU and the
US will work together in advance of the upcoming BTWC- Review
Conference in 2006, in order to strengthen the Biological Weapons and
Toxin Weapons Convention.
Promoting Full Implementation of UNSCR 1540: We will coordinate
efforts to assist and enhance the work being done by the UNSCR 1540
Committee, and compliance with the resolution. We will work together
to respond, where possible, to assistance requests from States seeking
to implement the requirements set by the UNSC Resolution 1540 and in
particular, to put in place national legal regulatory, and enforcement
measures against proliferation.
Establishing a Dialogue on Compliance and Verification: The
European Union and the United States renew their call on all States to
comply with their arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation
agreements and commitments. We will seek to ensure, through regular
exchanges, strict implementation of compliance with these agreements
and commitments. We will continue to support the multilateral
institutions charged with verifying activities under relevant treaties
and agreements. We will ask our experts to discuss issues of compliance
and verification in order to identify areas of possible cooperation and
joint undertaking.
Strengthening the IAEA: The U.S. and the EU welcome the steps taken
earlier this month by the Board of Governors of the IAEA that created a
new Committee on Safeguards and Verification, which will enhance the
IAEA's effectiveness and strengthen its ability to ensure that nations
comply with their NPT safeguards obligations. We will work together to
ensure all States conclude a comprehensive safeguards agreement and an
Additional Protocol with the IAEA. We agree that the Additional
Protocol should become a standard for nuclear cooperation and
non-proliferation.
Advancing the Proliferation Security Initiative: As we enhance our
own capabilities, laws and regulations to improve our readiness for
interdiction actions, we pledge to strengthen the Proliferation
Security Initiative and encourage PSI countries to support enhanced
cooperation against proliferation networks, including tracking and
halting financial transactions related to proliferation.
Global Partnership: The U.S. and the EU reaffirm our commitment to
the Global Partnership Initiative Against the Spread of Weapons and
Materials of Mass Destruction. We will assess ongoing and emerging
threats and coordinate our nonproliferation cooperation, including with
other participating states, to focus resources on priority concerns and
to make the most effective use of our resources.
Enhancing Nuclear Security: We intend to expand and deepen
cooperation to enhance the security of nuclear and radiological
materials. We welcome the establishment of the Global Threat Reduction
Initiative (GTRI) and will cooperate closely to implement this
important new initiative, including by exploring opportunities under
the GTRI to reduce the threat posed by radiological dispersal devices
and by identifying specific radiological threat reduction projects that
could be implemented.
Ensuring Radioactive Source Security: We remain concerned by the
risks posed by the potential use of radioactive sources for terrorist
purposes. We will work towards having effective controls applied by
the end of 2005 in accordance with the IAEA Guidance on the Import and
Export of Radioactive Sources. We will support IAEA efforts to assist
countries that need such assistance to establish effective and
sustainable controls.
Rationalizing Multilateral Disarmament Work: We will continue to
cooperate in order to overcome the stalemate in the Conference on
Disarmament and pursue reforming of the UN General Assembly's First
Committee on disarmament and international security. These initiatives
are part of our broader efforts to streamline and make the multilateral
disarmament, arms control and non-proliferation machinery more
responsive.
The U.S. and the EU take special note of the Conference to Consider
and Adopt Amendments to the Convention on the Physical Protection of
Nuclear Material (CPPNM) that will take place at the IAEA, July 4-8
2005, and we urge all States Parties to the CPPNM to attend and fully
support adoption of an amended Convention.
###
|