Qatar Stresses Importance of Efforts in Making Middle East Free of Weapons of Mass Destruction

Qatar Stresses Importance in Making Middle East Free of Weapons of Mass Destruction

The State of Qatar stressed the importance of consolidating efforts to make the Middle East region free of weapons of mass destruction (WMD), expressing its aspiration for serious and fruitful in the third session of the Conference on the Establishment of a Middle East Zone Free of Nuclear Weapons and Other Weapons of Mass Destruction.

This came in the statement by the Acting President of the National Committee for Weapons Prohibition Rashid Mohammed Al Nuaimi before the third session of the Conference on the Establishment of a Middle East Zone Free of Nuclear Weapons and Other Weapons of Mass Destruction, which kicked off in New York and concludes on Nov. 18.

Al Nuaimi said that the project to establish a free zone of WMD in the Middle East represents a unique challenge to rid the region of all three types of WMD, describing it as a very complex task, given that the Middle East is still a hotspot fraught with conflicts.

He added that despite dealing differently with banning techniques of these kinds of weapons, and the varying mechanisms and systems of inspection and verification for each of them, it was a matter of satisfaction for the State of Qatar that the previous presidency for the State of Kuwait had put the recommendation of the State of Qatar in between the two session of practice. The previous presidency formed a committee for that, and various significant activities were organized, which helped to better understand the complications of these issues.

The Acting President of the National Committee for Weapons Prohibition suggested that the new presidency carry on with the same approach to complete the discussion of the issues raised and focus on understanding the various comparable alternatives to reach a common ground on which to start.

He added that during the past four decades, the State of Qatar had participated in all the efforts and initiatives sought to free the Middle East region of nuclear weapons and other WMD.

He pointed out that the State of Qatar had signed and ratified the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and other international treaties on WMD. At the same time, the State of Qatar had warned of the serious power imbalance as a result of the failure to implement international promises and obligations in the field of banning nuclear weapons and WMD.

He stressed the significance of the conference, saying that the significance is because countries of the region have decided that they can not be patient any longer with the failure of the international community to fulfill its obligations towards establishing a free zone by the Middle East decision issued by the 1995 conference to review and extend the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, and the mechanism to for establishing the zone that was adopted by the Final Document of the 2010 NPT Review Conference.

He explained that due to this inaction, countries of the region decided to resort to the UN General Assembly to hold this annual conference to start establishing the zone, calling on the international community to support such initiatives and fulfill its obligations and responsibilities towards strengthening international peace and security.

Within the framework of Qatar's interest in supporting and strengthening Arab coordination or regional disarmament issues, Al Nuaimi said that Qatar took the initiative in coordination with the Arab League to organize the first Arab symposium on disarmament and nuclear non-proliferation, held in Doha from Sep. 12-15, 2022.

He explained that the symposium aimed to discuss international repercussions regarding the armament, especially review conferences, as well as to coordinate the Arab stances on the Establishment of a Middle East Zone Free of Nuclear Weapons and Other Weapons of Mass Destruction, pointing out that Qatar seeks to hold this symposium annually.

He expressed the State of Qatar's hope that the conference's outcomes build for a foundation through technical, political, and legal teams capable of offering pathways and mechanisms that enables the region to present a model for the rest of the world to follow. He stressed the State of Qatar's commitment to supporting the conference's leadership in achieving the hoped results to support the region's security and stability.

(QNA)