UN General Assembly
2002

the just struggle of the Palestinian people to regain their inalienable rights and to establish an independent Palestinian State with Al-Quds as its capital. We believe that the United Nations has an important role to play in bringing the two sides back to the negotiating table. We recognize the efforts of the Quartet, and encourage its members, especially the United States, to remain actively engaged in the search for a just, permanent and lasting peace in the region. Disarmament and arms control measures should remain a high priority on the international agenda. The international community must unite and act collectively to strengthen and enforce the non- proliferation regimes. The Maldives is party to all major multilateral instruments relating to arms control and disarmament, including the Treaty on the Non- Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. We call on those countries that are not party to those instruments to accede to them as soon as possible. Furthermore, my country believes that the establishment of nuclear- weapon-free zones and zones of peace in various parts