UN General Assembly
2005

regard, we regret that the seventh Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), held in New York from 2 to 27 May 2005, was unable to reach consensus on the substantive questions relating to the three pillars of the Treaty. The Lao People's Democratic Republic is of the view that all States parties should remain committed to the NPT and believes that it should continue to have cornerstone status in the context of global disarmament and the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The world economy continues to be characterized by slow and uneven growth and instability. Globalization may offer a great many opportunities to a number of countries. However, it also presents numerous challenges and risks for the developing world, particularly the most vulnerable groups, namely, the least developed countries and the landlocked developing countries. In reality, the process of globalization among and within countries has not produced equal benefits. The gap between the developed and developing world is widening, and we are all greatly concerned about increased poverty in