At UN, Pakistan Makes A Strong Pitch For Nuclear Supplier Group's Membership
Fahad Shabbir (@FahadShabbir) Published August 24, 2016 | 11:38 AM
UNITED NATIONS, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News -24th Augst,2016) : Pakistan has made a strong case for the country's membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, a 48-nation body that regulates the global trade in nuclear technology, telling the UN Security Council that the exemplary measures Islamabad had taken to strengthen nuclear safety establish its eligibility credentials. "We expect that a non-discriminatory, criteria-based approach is followed for extending NSG membership which strengthens the non-proliferation regime," Ambassador Maleeha Lodhi, the Pakistan permanent representative to the UN, said on Tuesday. Speaking in a debate on "non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction," Ambassador Lodhi said Pakistan had implemented a comprehensive export control regime, participated in the Nuclear Security Summit process, ratified the 2005 amendment to the Convention on Physical Protection of Nuclear Material, declared unilateral moratorium on further nuclear testing and reiterated its willingness to translate it into a bilateral arrangement on non-testing with India, all of which established its eligibility to become a NSG member.
In her remarks, the Pakistani envoy also said the global disarmament landscape presented a gloomy picture due to the lack of progress by States with nuclear weapons in fulfilling their disarmament obligations.
As disarmament and non-proliferation were linked, it was unrealistic to expect progress on one without movement on the other. A challenge to non-proliferation norms was the granting of discriminatory waivers, special arrangements which denoted double standards and opened the possibility of diverting material intended for peaceful use to military purposes, Ambassador Lodhi told the 15-member Council.
The success of resolution 1540 (2004) -- which affirms that the proliferation of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons and their means of delivery constitutes a threat to international peace and security -- owed less to its Chapter VII (enforcement) provisions than to its cooperative approach to implementation.
Differences in State capacities, such as legal and regulatory gaps and the lack of effective export control mechanisms, compounded challenges to addressing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, she said.
Related Topics
Recent Stories
Mired in crisis, Boeing reports another loss
Session Awarding Ceremony 2024 held at Cadet College Muzaffarabad
Austrian ski great Hirscher to make comeback under Dutch flag
Pakistan, Japan agrees to convene 'Economic Policy Dialogue'
FM Dar conveys deepest sympathy on torrential rains devastation in UAE
Spain PM Sanchez says weighing resignation after wife's graft probe
Tennis: ATP/WTA Madrid Open results - 1st update
Long-lost Klimt portrait auctioned off for 30 mn euros
Osaka seals first win on clay since 2022 in Madrid
Earthquake jolts Karachi
Sindh minister orders operation after attack on police in Ghotki
TikTok to fight US ban law in courts
More Stories From World
-
Football: English Championship table
5 hours ago -
Time for 'democratic transition' in Venezuela: opposition candidate to AFP
5 hours ago -
Spain's Pedro Sanchez : a risk-taker with a flair for survival
6 hours ago -
Football: French Ligue 1 table
6 hours ago -
Nadal will only play French Open if he can 'compete well'
6 hours ago -
Ukraine, Israel, TikTok: the massive aid package before US Congress
6 hours ago
-
TikTok to fight US ban law in courts
6 hours ago -
Football: French Ligue 1 results
7 hours ago -
Spain PM Sanchez says weighing resignation after wife's graft probe
8 hours ago -
Long-lost Klimt portrait auctioned off for 30 mn euros
8 hours ago -
TikTok to fight US ban law in courts
8 hours ago -
Anger among Ukrainians in Poland as Kyiv halts passport renewals
8 hours ago