At the same time, missile arms race and military conflicts between India and Pakistan intensified. It is the view of China that the Security Council Resolution 1172 has set out clearly the direction and fundamental principles for the resolution of the South Asian nuclear issue. The South Asian nuclear issue must be resolved with this framework. In this regard, we hope that the forthcoming visit by the president of the United States will facilitate the attainment of this goal. The present text has satisfactorily resolved the concerns of our both sides.
China is willing to be the first to sign the protocol when it is opened for signature.
For 5 consecutive years since 1995, China has voted for the nuclear disarmament resolution sponsored by Burma. China has also voted for the resolution sponsored by Malaysia for four consecutive years since 1996 on the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice on the legality of the use and the threat of use of nuclear weapons. I would like to emphasize that among the five nuclear weapon states, China is the only one that has voted for these two resolutions. In 1998, China signed and ratified the landmine protocol to the Certain Conventional Weapons Convention. We have cleared the mines in an area of over 300 square kilometers, which has greatly facilitated the exchanges between the residents of the two countries along the border.