Preparatory Committee for NPT Review Conference closes
May 12, 2019
by Junji Akechi, Staff Writer
NEW YORK — The third session of the Preparatory Committee for the Review Conference of the 2020 Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT), held in New York, closed on May 10. At a press conference after the session, Chairman Syed Mohamad Hasrin Aidid, from Malaysia, who presented the draft recommendations, said that the recommendations did not have as much authority without their unanimous adoption, but he hopes that they will have an impact on the discussions at the Review Conference. The recommendations will now carry the same weight as a working paper, which are submitted by member states to the Preparatory Committee or the Review Conference as opinions. Mr. Syed said that he had done his best to maintain balance among the various views expressed at the session and seek common ground.
The recommendations consist of the same contents that were found in the draft submitted on May 9 and are comprised of 67 items in five areas, such as nuclear disarmament. Taking into account the discussions of the original draft that was circulated on May 3, the recommendations added language that calls on the nuclear weapon states to swiftly move toward full nuclear disarmament. They also contain much greater description of the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons.
Prior to the Review Conference, which is held every five years, the Preparatory Committee meets annually in the three years leading up to the conference. This was the last Preparatory Committee session for the conference that will be held in 2020, which will mark the 50th anniversary year since the NPT entered into force. The Preparatory Committee session opened on April 29.
(Originally published on May 12, 2019)
NEW YORK — The third session of the Preparatory Committee for the Review Conference of the 2020 Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT), held in New York, closed on May 10. At a press conference after the session, Chairman Syed Mohamad Hasrin Aidid, from Malaysia, who presented the draft recommendations, said that the recommendations did not have as much authority without their unanimous adoption, but he hopes that they will have an impact on the discussions at the Review Conference. The recommendations will now carry the same weight as a working paper, which are submitted by member states to the Preparatory Committee or the Review Conference as opinions. Mr. Syed said that he had done his best to maintain balance among the various views expressed at the session and seek common ground.
The recommendations consist of the same contents that were found in the draft submitted on May 9 and are comprised of 67 items in five areas, such as nuclear disarmament. Taking into account the discussions of the original draft that was circulated on May 3, the recommendations added language that calls on the nuclear weapon states to swiftly move toward full nuclear disarmament. They also contain much greater description of the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons.
Prior to the Review Conference, which is held every five years, the Preparatory Committee meets annually in the three years leading up to the conference. This was the last Preparatory Committee session for the conference that will be held in 2020, which will mark the 50th anniversary year since the NPT entered into force. The Preparatory Committee session opened on April 29.
(Originally published on May 12, 2019)
