Socialist Republic of Viet Nam

Association of Southeast Asian Nations

STATEMENTby H.E Mr. Pham Binh Minh, First Deputy-Minister for Foreign Affairsof the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam on behalf of the Association of Southeast
Asian Nations at the 2010 Review Conferenceof the Treaty of Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons(New York, 4 May 2010)
Mr. President,
1. I have the honour to speak on behalf of the Member States of the Associationof Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN): Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia,Indonesia, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Myanmar, thePhilippines, Singapore, Thailand, and my own country Viet Nam.
2. At the outset, I wish to extend our warmest congratulations to you, a fellow
member of ASEAN, on your unanimous election as President of the 2010 NPT
Review Conference. Our equally warm congratulations go to the members ofthe Bureau. On behalf of ASEAN, I assure you, Mr. President, of our fullest
cooperation and support.
Mr. President,
3. ASEAN attaches great importance to the Review Conference, which aims toreinvigorate the collective effort to abolish nuclear weapons and support
nuclear non-proliferation. Over the past year, in the run-up to the Review
Conference, we have witnessed a more positive atmosphere towards nuclear
disarmament.
(a) At the United Nations, the Secretary General placed the issue ofdisarmament as a leading priority through his "five point action plan"
proposed in September 2008.
(b) In the signing of New START on 8 April 2010, between the holders of theworld's two largest nuclear weapons arsenals, the Russian Federation andthe United States, the world saw an agreement between the two to further
reduce the number of their respective nuclear warheads.

(c) While continuing to strive for the goal of total elimination of nuclear
weapons, we are encouraged by the US's bolder approach to diminish therole of nuclear weapons in its nuclear doctrine in the recently concluded
Nuclear Posture Review.
We know that these are all small steps individually, nevertheless, they are
positive and taken in the right direction. We should and we do welcome these,and encourage further measures by the Nuclear Weapon States, to discharge
their commitments on complete nuclear disarmament, in accordance with theirmultilaterally agreed commitments.
It is only logical that all States Parties at this NPT Review Conference shouldtake stock of the situation with respect to their commitments under the NPT,and propose actions with timelines that will advance their implementation of
the Treaty in an effective manner. In this regard, we support any efforts andproposals to identify elements that could help achieve this goal.
While we have mentioned some positive developments, Mr. President, the fact
remains that since the entry into force of the NPT 40 years ago and the end of
the Cold War, we continue to struggle to make progress. Today, the world still
has over 20,000 nuclear warheads while the proliferation of nuclear materials
remains a matter of global concern. Nuclear energy for peaceful purposesremains an untapped potential and technology that can be used by developing
countries for the betterment of their peoples. But to reach our NPT goals, both
Nuclear Weapon States and Non-Nuclear Weapon States must reach out tofind common ground. All States Party to the Treaty have "rights" that comewith real "obligations". Both Nuclear Weapon States and Non-NuclearWeapon States must equally commit to observe these "obligations" as
stipulated in the provisions of the Treaty, in order for the NPT to besuccessful. This Review Conference is a critical opportunity to shore up theTreaty.
As enshrined in the ASEAN Charter which entered into force on 15 December
2008, ASEAN fully supports nuclear disarmament, nuclear non-proliferationand the abolishment of all weapons of mass destruction. ASEAN strongly
supports and commits itself to the purposes and objectives set forth in theNPT, which is the cornerstone of nuclear disarmament, nuclear nonproliferation and peaceful uses of nuclear energy. ASEAN holds that these"three pillars" of the NPT should be treated in a balanced, comprehensive andnon-discriminating manner. We share the determination to work towards
preventing the spread of nuclear weapons and to achieve the goal of their totalelimination.

Mr. President,
8. In this context, ASEAN member states, inter alia,(a) Urge all States Party to the Treaty to strictly adhere to their obligations asstipulated in the provisions of the NPT.
(b) Urge all Nuclear Weapon States to carry out the 13 practical steps for
systematic and progressive implementation of Article VI in a transparent,
verifiable and irreversible manner. In that regard, we call on all Nuclear
Weapon States to immediately commit to concrete, verifiable and timebound steps to reduce their nuclear stockpiles, as well as to immediately
pledge to cease the qualitative improvement, development, production andstockpiling of their nuclear warheads and delivery systems. In the interim
to achieving full nuclear disarmament, we urge all Nuclear Weapon States
to declare a moratorium on nuclear testing as an initial first step, and to dealert the operational status of their nuclear-weapon systems. We also urge
all Nuclear Weapon States to adopt a "no first use" policy and to provide
legally binding "negative security assurances" to all Non- Nuclear Weapon
States.
(c) Urge both Nuclear Weapon States and Non- Nuclear Weapon States toconsolidate efforts to prevent the spread and proliferation of nuclear
materials, and support the strengthening of the role of the IAEA infulfilling its mission of Safety and Security, Science and Technology, andSafeguards and Verification.
(d) We attach great importance to the objective of the universalization of theNPT and call upon all States outside the NPT to accede to the Treaty as
Non- Nuclear Weapon States.
Mr. President,
9. ASEAN member states are all signatories to the Southeast Asian Nuclear
Weapon Free Zone Treaty (SEANWFZ Treaty), or the Bangkok Treaty. ThisTreaty entered into force in 1997 and we continue to work with the Nuclear
Weapon States toward their early signing of the SEANWFZ Protocol andexpand cooperation with the IAEA. Recently, our commitment towards
realizing the goals of the Bangkok Treaty was reiterated by our Heads of Stateand Government at the 16th ASEAN Summit in Hanoi, Viet Nam, in April
2010, where we pledged to intensify the Bangkok Treaty's "Plan of Action" toachieve our goals of a Nuclear Weapon Free Zone. In this regard, ASEAN has
submitted to the Review Conference a Memorandum on Activities
highlighting our efforts undertaken through the Bangkok Treaty.

10. ASEAN believes that Nuclear Weapon-Free Zones constitute an importantmeasure to strengthen nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear disarmament. In
this regard, we welcome the entry into force of the Central Asian Nuclear
Weapon Free Zone Treaty on 21 March 2009 which we believe helps further
strengthen regional and global peace and security. We also express support for
the establishment of a Middle East Nuclear Weapon Free Zone in accordancewith relevant Security Council and General Assembly resolutions.
Mr. President,
11. In my national capacity as Representative of Viet Nam, I would like to makeadditional remarks. Recalling the positions of the Non-Aligned Movement onissues under discussion at this Conference, we reiterate the call for theprohibition of the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons and their totalelimination. Along this line, Viet Nam has acceded to all major multilateraltreaties on the prohibition of weapons of mass destruction and has always
been seriously implementing its obligations under these treaties, including theSafeguards Agreement of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Since the last Review Conference, Viet Nam has ratified the Comprehensive
Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty and signed the Additional Protocol with IAEA.
Recently, the Vietnamese Government has decided to accede to theConvention on Nuclear Safety and endorse the Global Initiative to Combat
Nuclear Terrorism.
12. Viet Nam realizes both the benefits and essential requirements of safety andsecurity in the peaceful use of nuclear energy. Viet Nam supports efforts topromote nuclear safety and security, including the measures put forth by theNuclear Security Summit held in Washington D.C last month. At the sametime, we attach great importance to the expansion of assistance to developing
countries in the use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. In this regard,Viet Nam looks forward to working together with international partners inorganizing an international conference on the use of nuclear energy forpeaceful purposes as noted in Resolution 1887 of the UN Security Council
Summit on Disarmament and Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons held in
September 2009.
I thank you, Mr. President.