Statement by Ambassador Mr. Mitsuru KITANO, Director-General, Disarmament, Non-Proliferation and Science Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, at the 41st Session of the Preparatory Commission for the CTBTO
2013/10/28
Thank you Mr Chairman,
On behalf of the Japanese Government, I would like to express our sincere gratitude to Ambassador Jan Petersen, the Chair of the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) for his active role during his tenure which has coincided with important period of times toward the entry into force of the CTBT. I would also like to thank Ambassador Gunaajav Batjargal, the Chair of Working Group A, Mr. Hein Haak, the Chair of Working Group B, and Sir Michael Weston, the Chair of the Advisory Group, for their outstanding efforts during the past sessions.
Also, once again, I would like to reiterate our congratulations to Dr. Lassina Zerbo on his appointment as Executive Secretary of the Preparatory Commission. My delegation confirms Japan’s intention to support Dr. Zerbo and further strengthen the cooperation with the Provisional Technical Secretariat (PTS) under Dr. Zerbo’s leadership.
[Promoting CTBT’s entry into force]
Mr. Chairman,
As the only country ever to have experienced atomic bombings, Japan places high importance on the early entry into force of the CTBT as an essential element of the international nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation regime. The completion and good maintenance of the CTBT verification regime is a high priority.
During the Eighth Conference on Facilitating the Entry into Force of the CTBT in New York, our Foreign Minister, Mr. Fumio Kishida, who was born and raised in Hiroshima, proposed three actions, further to ensure the prohibition of nuclear tests, bearing in mind that it is an emerging de facto international norm.
1) Taking united and determined actions as one united international community to condemn nuclear tests if and when they are conducted;
2) Moving quickly forward with the construction and certification of the International Monitoring System (IMS) stations in order to complete the IMS; and,
3) Enhancing political actions by each State to promote prompt ratifications by the Annex II countries.
With respect to the third point, we welcome Executive Secretary Dr. Zerbo’s initiative to establish the Group of Eminent Persons (GEM) and express Japan’s intention to cooperate positively with this initiative.
The "Friends of the CTBT" (namely Australia, Canada, Finland, Germany, Japan, and the Netherlands) and the Article XIV Conference Co-Chairs (currently Hungary and Indonesia) plan to hold another CTBT Friends’ Ministerial Meeting on the margins of the UN General Assembly in 2014. Japan is determined to make its utmost efforts to further contribute to that process.
[Verification Regime of Nuclear Tests]
Mr. Chairman,
My delegation welcomes the fact that approximately 87% of the IMS stations have been installed and that approximately 82% of facilities have been certified. We hope the remaining IMS stations and facilities will be completed soon.
The event in North Korea in February this year shows once again that the IMS is playing an extremely important role in the global verification system. In this light, Japan highly commends the PTS for its efforts to improve its capability to detect nuclear tests, in spite of its budget constraints.
Japan welcomes that during Dr. Zerbo’s visit to China in August this year, an agreement was reached between China and the CTBTO to send real time data from the IMS stations in China to the CTBTO's International Data Centre in Vienna. Japan hopes to see steady implementation and further progress in this regard.
To strengthen the capacity for the operation of IMS facilities, Japan has organized the annual JICA Global Seismological Observation Training Courses for the last 19 years. We have seen a total of 176 participants from 70 countries so far, and we intend to continue to host this training programme.
We further support the CTBTO’s commitment to preparing On-Site Inspections (OSI), which we believe to be essential for the verification regime. Japan will continue to contribute to the Integrated Field Exercise 2014 (IFE14) in Jordan next year by making a Contribution-in-Kind of transportable gamma-ray measurement system.
[2014 Draft Programme and Budget]
Mr. Chairman,
On the Programme and Budget, I would like to express my gratitude to Executive Secretary Dr. Zerbo for his active role in formulating the 2014 Draft Programme and the programme-driven Budget Proposals, and also to the PTS for its efforts in streamlining the programme budget.
It is however a reality that many States Signatories, including Japan, are facing serious budgetary constraints. Therefore, Japan wishes that the PTS will continue to make further efforts to maintain and further build up the verification system while making savings and reducing expenses through measures aimed at further efficiency.
In this connection, we hope that open-ended informal consultations of the Working Group A are held starting early next year in order to allow States Signatories to discuss and analyze the appropriate budget outline at an earlier stage.
[Concluding Remarks]
Mr. Chairman,
Japan’s Foreign Minister, Mr. Fumio Kishida, stated in New York, that in the coming year, we should reinforce our clear and strong opposition to nuclear tests, and to strengthen the momentum for early entry into force of the CTBT. Japan calls on all countries to take necessary political actions to promote, in particular, the ratification of the Treaty by the Annex II States. To this end, Japan will cooperate closely with States Signatories, the Executive Secretary and the PTS.
Mr. Chairman,
The Chair of the Preparatory Commission in 2014 is now to be nominated from the SEAPFE group. Japan has recently announced its candidature for the Chair of the Preparatory Commission in 2014. If elected, Japan will aim to bring together the wisdom and efforts of the States Signatories to realize our shared goals.
Let me conclude my remarks by expressing our sincere hope that this Preparatory Commission will be convened successfully with tangible progress on the various issues we are facing.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman,
On behalf of the Japanese Government, I would like to express our sincere gratitude to Ambassador Jan Petersen, the Chair of the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) for his active role during his tenure which has coincided with important period of times toward the entry into force of the CTBT. I would also like to thank Ambassador Gunaajav Batjargal, the Chair of Working Group A, Mr. Hein Haak, the Chair of Working Group B, and Sir Michael Weston, the Chair of the Advisory Group, for their outstanding efforts during the past sessions.
Also, once again, I would like to reiterate our congratulations to Dr. Lassina Zerbo on his appointment as Executive Secretary of the Preparatory Commission. My delegation confirms Japan’s intention to support Dr. Zerbo and further strengthen the cooperation with the Provisional Technical Secretariat (PTS) under Dr. Zerbo’s leadership.
[Promoting CTBT’s entry into force]
Mr. Chairman,
As the only country ever to have experienced atomic bombings, Japan places high importance on the early entry into force of the CTBT as an essential element of the international nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation regime. The completion and good maintenance of the CTBT verification regime is a high priority.
During the Eighth Conference on Facilitating the Entry into Force of the CTBT in New York, our Foreign Minister, Mr. Fumio Kishida, who was born and raised in Hiroshima, proposed three actions, further to ensure the prohibition of nuclear tests, bearing in mind that it is an emerging de facto international norm.
1) Taking united and determined actions as one united international community to condemn nuclear tests if and when they are conducted;
2) Moving quickly forward with the construction and certification of the International Monitoring System (IMS) stations in order to complete the IMS; and,
3) Enhancing political actions by each State to promote prompt ratifications by the Annex II countries.
With respect to the third point, we welcome Executive Secretary Dr. Zerbo’s initiative to establish the Group of Eminent Persons (GEM) and express Japan’s intention to cooperate positively with this initiative.
The "Friends of the CTBT" (namely Australia, Canada, Finland, Germany, Japan, and the Netherlands) and the Article XIV Conference Co-Chairs (currently Hungary and Indonesia) plan to hold another CTBT Friends’ Ministerial Meeting on the margins of the UN General Assembly in 2014. Japan is determined to make its utmost efforts to further contribute to that process.
[Verification Regime of Nuclear Tests]
Mr. Chairman,
My delegation welcomes the fact that approximately 87% of the IMS stations have been installed and that approximately 82% of facilities have been certified. We hope the remaining IMS stations and facilities will be completed soon.
The event in North Korea in February this year shows once again that the IMS is playing an extremely important role in the global verification system. In this light, Japan highly commends the PTS for its efforts to improve its capability to detect nuclear tests, in spite of its budget constraints.
Japan welcomes that during Dr. Zerbo’s visit to China in August this year, an agreement was reached between China and the CTBTO to send real time data from the IMS stations in China to the CTBTO's International Data Centre in Vienna. Japan hopes to see steady implementation and further progress in this regard.
To strengthen the capacity for the operation of IMS facilities, Japan has organized the annual JICA Global Seismological Observation Training Courses for the last 19 years. We have seen a total of 176 participants from 70 countries so far, and we intend to continue to host this training programme.
We further support the CTBTO’s commitment to preparing On-Site Inspections (OSI), which we believe to be essential for the verification regime. Japan will continue to contribute to the Integrated Field Exercise 2014 (IFE14) in Jordan next year by making a Contribution-in-Kind of transportable gamma-ray measurement system.
[2014 Draft Programme and Budget]
Mr. Chairman,
On the Programme and Budget, I would like to express my gratitude to Executive Secretary Dr. Zerbo for his active role in formulating the 2014 Draft Programme and the programme-driven Budget Proposals, and also to the PTS for its efforts in streamlining the programme budget.
It is however a reality that many States Signatories, including Japan, are facing serious budgetary constraints. Therefore, Japan wishes that the PTS will continue to make further efforts to maintain and further build up the verification system while making savings and reducing expenses through measures aimed at further efficiency.
In this connection, we hope that open-ended informal consultations of the Working Group A are held starting early next year in order to allow States Signatories to discuss and analyze the appropriate budget outline at an earlier stage.
[Concluding Remarks]
Mr. Chairman,
Japan’s Foreign Minister, Mr. Fumio Kishida, stated in New York, that in the coming year, we should reinforce our clear and strong opposition to nuclear tests, and to strengthen the momentum for early entry into force of the CTBT. Japan calls on all countries to take necessary political actions to promote, in particular, the ratification of the Treaty by the Annex II States. To this end, Japan will cooperate closely with States Signatories, the Executive Secretary and the PTS.
Mr. Chairman,
The Chair of the Preparatory Commission in 2014 is now to be nominated from the SEAPFE group. Japan has recently announced its candidature for the Chair of the Preparatory Commission in 2014. If elected, Japan will aim to bring together the wisdom and efforts of the States Signatories to realize our shared goals.
Let me conclude my remarks by expressing our sincere hope that this Preparatory Commission will be convened successfully with tangible progress on the various issues we are facing.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman,
The Practical Export Control Workshop was hosted by the Wassenaar Arrangement as part of its 20th Anniversary programs and held at the Permanent Mission of Japan to the International Organizations in Vienna on 27 and 28 June 2016. More than 100 government representatives from 46 countries participated in the technically focused Practical Workshop.
Workshop speakers included the 2016 WA Plenary Chair Ambassador Anu Laamanen (Finland), 2016 WA General Working Group Chair Ambassador Paul Beijer (Sweden), 2015-2016 WA Experts Group Chair Robertas Rosinas (Lithuania), 2016 WA Licensing and Enforcement Officers Meeting Chair Jon Erik Strömö (Norway), as well as the Head of the WA Secretariat, Ambassador Philip Griffiths. The WA control lists as well as export licensing and enforcement topics were covered during the two days.
The following link from WA’s webpage contains more details:
http://www.wassenaar.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/June-2016-Workshop-media-release.pdf
Workshop speakers included the 2016 WA Plenary Chair Ambassador Anu Laamanen (Finland), 2016 WA General Working Group Chair Ambassador Paul Beijer (Sweden), 2015-2016 WA Experts Group Chair Robertas Rosinas (Lithuania), 2016 WA Licensing and Enforcement Officers Meeting Chair Jon Erik Strömö (Norway), as well as the Head of the WA Secretariat, Ambassador Philip Griffiths. The WA control lists as well as export licensing and enforcement topics were covered during the two days.
The following link from WA’s webpage contains more details:
http://www.wassenaar.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/June-2016-Workshop-media-release.pdf