Joint Statement with regard to the DPRK’s CD Presidency
Delivered by Ambassador Amanda Gorely, Permanent Representative of Australia to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva
I have the honor to speak on behalf of Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Montenegro, Netherlands, New Zealand, Republic of North Macedonia, Norway, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, United States of America, the European Union, and my own country Australia.
1. Deeply committed to the Conference on Disarmament (CD), as the single multilateral negotiating forum on disarmament with the participation of key stakeholders, and to advance discussions on its important agenda, we decided to participate in the meetings of this body during the Presidency of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). Yet we remain gravely concerned about the DPRK’s reckless actions which continue to seriously undermine the very value of the CD. Our constructive participation in the work of this body during the DPRK’s Presidency should not be construed in any way as a tacit consent to nor an acknowledgment of the actions taken by the DPRK in violation of numerous United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions. To avoid any misunderstanding, let us reiterate our common position at the outset of its Presidency.
2. We are deeply concerned about the DPRK’s continued advancement of weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile capabilities, including reports that it is preparing to conduct its 7th nuclear test. Since the beginning of 2022, the DPRK has conducted an unprecedented series of missile tests, including launches of intercontinental ballistic missiles, alleged hypersonic weapons, ballistic missiles with the stated intent for the operation of tactical nuclear weapons, and at least one submarine-launched ballistic missile. These tests are all clear violations of UNSC resolutions and demonstrate the DPRK’s continued efforts to expand and further develop its ballistic missile capabilities. They are a threat to international peace and security and seek to undermine the global nonproliferation regime.
3. We urge the DPRK to cease its destabilizing actions and to comply with its international obligations under relevant UN Security Council resolutions to abandon all nuclear weapons and existing nuclear programs, as well as any other WMD and ballistic missiles programs, in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner. We urge the DPRK to return at an early date to, and fully comply with, the Non-Proliferation Treaty and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards. We call on the DPRK to sign and ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), and in the meantime, to fully observe a moratorium on nuclear test explosions or any other nuclear explosion.
4. We support diplomatic engagement towards peace and security on the Korean peninsula and urge the DPRK to resume dialogue with relevant parties.
Thank you.
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