STATEMENT BY H.E. AMBASSADOR DATUK HASMY BIN AGAM, ALTERNATE
PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF MALAYSIA TO THE UNITED NATIONS ON
DISARMAMENT AND INTERNATIONAL SECURITY AT THE FIRST COMMITTEE
OF THE 51ST SESSION OF THE UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY ON
MONDAY, 14TH OCTOBER 1996
Mr. Chairman,
May I congratulate you, and members of the Bureau, on your elections. I am confident that
under your stewardship this Committee would be able to carry out its work to its successful
conclusion. My delegation will extend to you our fullest cooperation.
Mr. Chairman,
2. My delegation wishes to thank the Secretary-General of the United Nations for the important
and comprehensive statement he has just made in this Committee. His statement will surely
provide a useful setting for the discussion of the issues before this Committee.
Mr. Chairman,
3. My delegation has consistently maintained that the United Nations has a central role and
primary responsibility in addressing the issues of disarmament in ways that would further
strengthen international peace and security. In doing so, we always believe that the multilateral
mechanisms of the United Nations system should be utilized to the fullest. Recent developments
in the field of disarmament should inspire and motivate us to strive harder in enhancing our
collective determination to promote genuine progress towards the realization of the goals of
general and complete disarmament. My delegation hopes that the deliberations at this session of
the General Assembly will make a positive and meaningful contribution in the attainment of
these goals.
4. The adoption of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) on 10 September this
year has been described as one of the significant events pertaining to nuclear disarmament. My
Prime Minister, Dr. Mahathir Mohammad, had already expressed Malaysia's position on the
CTBT during his recent address to this session of the General Assembly. He had characterised
the CTBT as being flawed and deficient in a number of aspects, not the least of which were its
failure to set the Treaty in the overall context of nuclear disarmament, lack of a clear time-frame
for the total elimination of nuclear weapons and an ill-conceived and controversial
entry-into-force provision. Nevertheless, Malaysia had supported the enabling resolution during
the resumed session of 50th General Assembly and will sign the Treaty out of the realization that
an imperfect Treaty is better than no treaty. While we regret that the Treaty will not put an end
to all forms and manner of testing of nuclear weapon devices, the Treaty would halt, or at the
very least, strongly inhibit nuclear testing as we know it. The challenge before the international
community, pending the entry into force of the Treaty, is in ensuring that the current moratoria
on nuclear testing are being and will continue to be observed, while exerting every effort to
secure the universal endorsement of the Treaty.
Mr. Chairman,
5. The Malaysian delegation attaches vital importance to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
(NPT) as a global instrument to check nuclear proliferation. It is the hope of my delegation that
the review process to strengthen the NPT, beginning in 1997, would provide us the opportunity
to consider further steps that could be taken by States Parties in the fulfillment of their Treaty
obligations, particularly in respect of the obligations stipulated in Article VI of the Treaty. We
also hope that the review process will also seriously consider the efforts that could be made to
bring those few countries that remain outside of the Treaty into the NPT regime so as to realise
its much-desired universality. This remains an extremely important objective. In this regard, my
delegation wishes to underscore the special role and responsibility of the nuclear-weapon States
vis-a-vis the NPT as the fulfillment of their part of the "bargain" would be a critical factor in
bringing about the universality of the Treaty.
6. My delegation welcomes the recent advisory opinion delivered by the International Court of
Justice (ICJ) on the Legality of the Threat and Use of Nuclear Weapons, in response to the
General Assembly's resolution [49/75K]. Malaysia and twenty-one other countries submitted
separate written and oral submissions at The Hague. While the Court did not definitively
conclude whether the threat or use of nuclear weapons would be lawful or unlawful even in the
"extreme circumstance of self defence in which the very survival of a State is at stake"
nevertheless that Court concluded unanimously that, "there exists an obligation to pursue in good
faith and bring to a conclusion negotiations leading to nuclear disarmament in all its aspects
under strict and effective international control".
7. While we would have preferred a categorical ruling by the Court outlawing the threat and use
of nuclear weapons, my delegation nevertheless considers the Court's Advisory Opinion an
important development in the overall disarmament process. It was a positive contribution by the
Court towards the realisation of the goal of total elimination of nuclear weapons, which must be
pursued by the international community if we were to eliminate the possibility of this planet, and
all that are on it, from being annihilated by these horrendous weapons of mass destruction. My
delegation salutes the Court for this courageous legal opinion which in our view had reinforced
the faith of the international community on the integrity as well as the important role of the Court
in the international system.
8. To render the Court's Advisory Opinion meaningful, this Committee and this session of the
General Assembly should work towards accelerating the process of nuclear disarmament.
Towards this end Malaysia, along with other like-minded countries, in our determined pursuit of
the goal of the total elimination of nuclear weapons, will be initiating a follow-up resolution
pertaining to the ICJ Advisory Opinion in this Committee. We hope that this initiative will be
supported by all those countries which are fundamentally opposed to the threat and use of
nuclear weapons and which desire to see a world entirely free of these weapons of mass
destruction.
Mr. Chairman,
9. My delegation is encouraged by the accelerating trend of the establishment of
nuclear-weapon-free zones. The countries of South-east Asia had, after long years of
negotiations, concluded in December 1995 the Treaty on the South-east Asia
Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone (SEANWFZ) which would contribute to further enhancing regional
peace and security. The SEANWFZ Treaty calls upon the nuclear powers to accede to the
protocol to the Treaty; the Southeast Asian States look forward to this accession at an early date.
My delegation also lauds the signing of the Cairo Declaration on 11 April 1996 formally
establishing the African Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone (the Pelindaba Treaty). The establishment
of these zones, in addition to those in Latin America and the Caribbean (Tlatelolco Treaty) and
the South Pacific (Raratonga Treaty) reflects the genuine aspiration of the peoples of these
regions to be free of nuclear insecurity. With the establishment of the four nuclear-weapon-free
zones, the entire southern hemisphere is now almost nuclear free. The further strengthening of
these regimes through the establishment of new ones, especially in conflict-prone areas of the
world, would be a major contribution towards promoting nuclear non-proliferation and
disarmament. In this regard the initiative being taken in this Committee by the delegation of
Brazil aimed at further consolidating existing nuclear-weapon-free zones is a commendable
effort.
10. In conclusion, Mr. Chairman, my delegation hopes that the deliberations in this Committee
and at this session of the General Assembly would contribute towards advancing the
disarmament process a step further towards the ultimate goal of a world free of nuclear weapons.
We would urge delegations to draw inspiration and encouragement from recent positive
developments in nuclear disarmament such as the ICJ advisory opinion and the signing of the
CTBT. However, this can only happen if old and outdated security concepts, paradigms and
mindsets are discarded - the sooner the better. A new phase to persuade and prod nuclear
weapon States to rethink their nuclear policy in the post-Cold War period must begin. At the
same time, every effort should be made to discourage or curb States with aspirations to acquire
nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction from proceeding with their plans.
Mr. Chairman,
11. I have in my statement, only touched on some of the issues before us in the interest of saving
time. My delegation intends to make further brief and hopefully focussed interventions on other
specific issues in the course of the deliberations in this Committee.
I thank you, Mr Chairman.