Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-03-13-Speech-2-152"
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"en.20070313.19.2-152"2
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"Mr President, President-in-Office of the Council, honourable Members, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and among them nuclear weapons, is potentially the greatest threat to European security. Nuclear weapons proliferation is headline news, not least when it concerns Iran and North Korea.
As I said, in the future we will do more. Under the new Instrument for Stability we will have resources to continue and strengthen work to enhance our security against nuclear proliferation threats. In closing, let me take the opportunity to thank this Parliament once again for the support it has given the Commission in setting up a new generation of non-proliferation assistance programmes through a series of pilot projects.
On Iran, we are still at a delicate stage. We noted with concern Dr ElBaradei’s recent report that Iran has not yet suspended its enrichment-related activities and does not appear to have taken the necessary steps to ensure compliance with UN Security Council Resolution 1737. The European Union’s External Relations Council has just formally adopted a common position calling for the necessary firmness to be shown by the international community. We are serious about the double-track policy which, as Mr Gloser has just outlined, has been cemented also by the recent ‘three and three’ talks in London. This means that we may aim at maintaining dialogue and enhancing our contacts with civil society, as well as also exerting pressure. Discussions in New York are now focusing on moving beyond the existing sanctions towards a new Security Council resolution.
On North Korea, we welcome the results of the Six Party Talks held in Beijing on 13 February 2007. The EU is consulting with the Six, offering the best means by which we can assist in this process, while remaining committed to the implementation of Security Council Resolution 1718. We support very strongly the current mission of Dr ElBaradei to North Korea aiming at the return of the IAEA inspectors as part of this accord and I share his assessment that this is a crucial confidence-building process. I hope that the shutdown of the Yongbyon plant goes ahead by mid-April.
The 1970 Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) established the non-proliferation regime as we know it – with its fundamental balance between nuclear disarmament, non-proliferation and the peaceful use of nuclear energy. From it then followed several aspects which are of great importance to the European Union, namely the principle of regulated nuclear trade, nuclear safeguards and the International Atomic Energy Agency, which monitors compliance. Strengthening the effectiveness of the NPT will make the world safer. States parties should be encouraged to work towards this aim with a view to the upcoming review conference.
While the headlines have focused on the regime’s difficulties, we should not underestimate its successes. South Africa, Argentina, Brazil, South Korea and Libya, for example, have all decided to forego nuclear weapons programmes.
My recent visit to India also gave me an opportunity to stress to the Indian leadership our hope that India will come much closer to the NPT regime and join the comprehensive test ban treaty.
We are looking forward to civil nuclear cooperation with India, once the necessary preconditions are met. These developments should also increase Pakistan’s willingness to cooperate with the international community in the non-proliferation context. Nuclear non-proliferation is an area in which the Commission makes an important contribution. Since 1957, the Euratom Treaty has provided the Commission with wide-ranging responsibilities. The Commission’s safeguard activities are closely coordinated with the IAEA, freeing up its resources to be deployed to more troublesome regions of the world. We are also playing our part in ensuring that the EU’s nuclear export controls are as robust as possible, supporting the Dual-Use Regulation 1334 from the year 2000. We also assist third states in enhancing their export controls and combating illicit trafficking in nuclear and radiological materials.
The Commission is also a major provider of assistance for international non-proliferation efforts. One important example is the G8 Global Partnership against Weapons of Mass Destruction, where one billion euros have been pledged for assistance in the former Soviet Union, 400 million of which have already been spent.
For more than 25 years the Commission’s Joint Research Centre has been working closely with the IAEA, providing it with scientific and technological support."@en1
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