Joint Statement at the High Level Segment

Conference on Disarmament, Geneva, 26 February, 2024

Read out by the Foreign Minister of Spain, J​osé Manuel Albares Bueno

Mr. President,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of:

Albania, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Republic of Moldova, Principality of Monaco, Montenegro, New Zealand, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and my own country, Spain.

The high-level segment of the Conference on Disarmament coincides with a poignant moment: the 10-year mark of the start of Russia's war against Ukraine and two years since Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Russia’s brutal war against Ukraine is a gross violation of international law, contravening the very principles enshrined in the UN Charter. This aggression directly threatens non-proliferation and disarmament efforts, including in the Conference on Disarmament. It directly undermines international peace and the global security architecture. Russia's irresponsible nuclear rhetoric risks escalating tensions.

Russia’s actions are putting the global community at risk by contributing to food and energy insecurity, having dramatic effects on the most vulnerable around the globe.    

We renew our unequivocal condemnation of Russia's relentless assaults on Ukraine's territory, including its civilian population and critical infrastructure. The intensification of Russia’s campaign of systematic air strikes on Ukrainian cities since the start of 2024 has brought more destruction and unspeakable suffering and hardship to millions of affected civilians, including women and children. UNICEF has reported an estimated 1.5 million children are at risk of depression and education has been disrupted for more than five million boys and girls. Thousands of Ukraine children have been unlawfully deported to Russia.

 We commend the people of Ukraine for their unflagging strength, bravery, and resilience in the face of Russia’s aggression.

We reiterate the repeated calls by an overwhelming majority of the UN General Assembly that Russia immediately cease its hostilities and its attacks on the civilian objects and critical infrastructure of Ukraine and immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders.

We reaffirm our full support for Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders, as well as for Ukraine’s inherent right to self-defence against the illegal Russian aggression.

Mr. President,

In the past year, despite Russia’s strategic failure to obliterate Ukraine and subjugate its people, we have seen Russia repeatedly violate international norms and commitments that are essential to our collective security.

We condemn in the strongest terms Russia’s pursuit of arms transfers from Iran and the DPRK and those countries’ military support of the Russian campaign. Iran has consistently supplied armed unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to Russia which have been used to kill civilians in Ukraine. The DPRK’s continued provision of ballistic missiles to Russia are in flagrant breach of the UN arms embargos established by UN Security Council resolutions. We call upon Iran and the DPRK to immediately cease such actions and urge all countries to refrain from supporting Russia’s war of aggression.

Russia’s withdrawal of its ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), its withdrawal from the Treaty on Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE), its purported and legally invalid suspension of the New START Treaty, and its public rejection of a bilateral offer engage on maintaining stability demonstrate its continued disregard for arms control,  transparency to reduce risk of conflict, and Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty commitments.

In this body, we  denounce Russia's arbitrary exclusion of 14 UN Member States from participation in the Conference on Disarmament based solely on political motivations. Such actions undermine the principles of inclusivity and multilateralism and erode the credibility of the Conference as a vital and inclusive negotiating forum for disarmament instruments. We urge Russia to cease its systematic attempts over the past year to spread misinformation and abuse procedure to obstruct disarmament fora across the multilateral system. 

             We condemn the announced deployment of Russian nuclear warheads in Belarus, which is particularly destabilizing given that Belarus continues to make its territory and its military, transport and logistical infrastructure available to Russia

to commit attacks on Ukraine. We call on Belarusian authorities to put an immediate end to their support of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine,  and reverse decisions that can only contribute to heightening tensions in the region.

We remain gravely concerned about the implications of Russia’s illegal invasion for nuclear safety, security and safeguards, and about Russia’s continued presence at Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP), which raises the risk of an accident. We fully support the International Atomic Energy Agency's efforts to address nuclear safety, security, and safeguards in Ukraine, and call upon Russia to adhere the IAEA`s seven pillars and the DG Grossi`s five principles for nuclear safety and security at ZNPP, as well as to the relevant IAEA Board of Governors and IAEA General Conference resolutions by immediately ceasing all actions against and at nuclear facilities in Ukraine and withdrawing its military and other personnel from the ZNPP.

Mr. President,

As we commence the 2024 Sesson of work at the CD, we support the international efforts undertaken at the highest political level to promote a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in Ukraine, based on the principles of the UN Charter.

We remain steadfast in our commitment to upholding the UN Charter and international law, and to advancing effective multilateralism for a safer, more secure, and sustainable world.

I thank you.