Mr. Chair,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union and its Member States.

The Candidate Countries North Macedonia^*, Montenegro^*, Albania^*, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, and Bosnia and Herzegovina^*, the potential candidate country Georgia, and the EFTA country Norway, member of the European Economic Area, and San Marino align themselves with this statement.

Permit me at the outset to underline that we acknowledge the role of UNDC as specialized subsidiary body for in-depth deliberations on specific disarmament issues of particular importance. We consider our engagement within UNDC as another example of our dedication to effective multilateralism, non-proliferation and disarmament efforts.

Mr. Chair,

Last year we started our address with the global security context of our meeting. We cannot but repeat this approach also this year.

For over one year Russia has been waging its illegal war of aggression against Ukraine –the greatest challenge to international peace and security, which affects people in all corners of the world, with particularly dramatic effects on the most vulnerable. But foremost with tragic and horrible consequences for the Ukrainian people. Russia bears full responsibility for this act of aggression and all loss of life, destruction of Ukrainian critical infrastructure, property and the natural environment it causes. It will be held accountable for its actions.

International relations must not be based on the use or threat of use of force. Russia’s war of aggression brings death, destruction and unbearable suffering to the people of Ukraine but it also constitutes a threat to international peace and security. It represents a blatant breach of international law, including international humanitarian and human rights law. The EU reiterates its support to Ukraine’s quest for a just and lasting peace in line with the UN Charter. Russia must stop this atrocious war and immediately, completely, and unconditionally withdraw all of its troops and equipment from all of the territory of Ukraine, within its internationally recognized borders.

Since the very first day of Russia’s brutal full-scale invasion of Ukraine the EU has been standing united and in full solidarity with Ukraine and its people. We have been supporting Ukraine in its rightful and courageous self-defence and we will continue doing so for as long as required by circumstances.

Mr. Chair,

The EU and its MSs attach great importance to disarmament, non-proliferation and arms control instruments which contribute to peace, security and stability. The current complex security environment, marked by the Russian war of aggression, increased tensions and continued proliferation crises, underscores the need to not only preserve but further strengthen these instruments. The UNDC provides an important forum for us to reflect and deliberate how this can be done.

However, we witness a worrying trend of some States moving away from their obligations, commitments, multilateral measures, rules and principles. We regret Russia misusing the consensus principle in almost every disarmament, non-proliferation and export control forum. Faced with such obstructionism, the EU and its Member States will continue to robustly counter any backtracking from agreed commitments and obligations.

In this context, we are pleased that the UNDC was able to resume its work in 2022 after 3-year interruption. It is a positive development since we strongly believe that the UNDC can make a meaningful contribution to the disarmament and non-proliferation work of the United Nations. We trust that this year we can find further common ground in order to adopt recommendations by consensus both on the nuclear and the outer space issues.

Mr. Chair,

The NPT is and remains the cornerstone of the international nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation regime. We value discussions held at latest NPT RevCon in August and deeply regret that no consensus was reached due to, Russia’s isolated opposition. Nevertheless, the legally binding obligations enshrined in the NPT and commitments from the past Review Conferences remain valid. We are looking forward to continue discussions in the context of UNDC Working Group I and hope that they can feed into substantive talks at the NPT PrepCom and Working Group on strengthening the review cycle in which we will engage constructively with a view to achieving meaningful progress to strengthen the NPT.

Recalling NPT obligations, the Reagan-Gorbachev formula reiterated by all 5 nuclear weapon states in January 2022 as well as the Budapest Memorandum, we deplore Russia’s threatening nuclear rhetoric and reckless repeated threats to use nuclear weapons.  The announced stationing of nuclear weapons in Belarus is further irresponsible escalation that we condemn in the strongest terms.

The EU emphasize the importance of the New START for global disarmament. In this regard we deplore Russia’s suspension of its participation in New START and we call on Russia to resume implementation of all its obligations under the Treaty.

We call on China to improve its performance in confidence building, by providing more transparency regarding its nuclear build-up, by serious engagement in arms control efforts and participation in future arms control agreement.

We call on DPRK to immediately comply with UN Security Council resolutions and to engage in meaningful discussions with all relevant parties to build a basis for sustainable peace and security and to take steps aimed at pursuing the complete, verifiable, irreversible denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

We highly value the central role of IAEA in nuclear non-proliferation. We consider IAEA’s Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement combined with an Additional Protocol as the current global verification standard.

Mr. Chair,

The EU and its Member States are actively engaged in promoting the preservation of a safe, secure and sustainable space environment and the peaceful use of outer space on an equitable and mutually-acceptable basis. We recognise outer space as a global commons, to be used for the benefit of all. Strengthening the safety, security, sustainability and peaceful nature of outer space activities is a key priority, and in the common interest of present and future generations. We are strongly committed to the prevention of an arms race in outer space, which is essential for strengthening international security and stability and for safeguarding the free exploration and long-term use of the space environment for peaceful purposes.

Trust and confidence are at the centre of any process. Thus, we are convinced that fostering mutual trust, strengthening transparency between States and agreeing on norms of responsible behaviours can make an important contribution to the security, safety and sustainability of activities in outer space. The EU and its Member States consider that publishing and sharing information about space doctrines, policies and strategies is a responsible behaviour and would help create confidence between different actors. Such measures will help reduce the risks of misperception, miscalculation, and unwanted conflict escalation.

Against this background, as announced in the Strategic Compass in March 2022, the High Representative and the European Commission have published a Joint Communication on the EU Space Strategy for Security and Defence in March 2023 to be discussed by Member States.  Through the space strategy for security and defence, the EU intends reinforce its role as a global space power by better protecting space systems and services and countering any hostile action in space.

By openly communicating its space strategy for security and defence, the EU intends to meet its commitment to transparency and thereby to further build confidence in outer space.

The strategy highlights the importance of multilateral engagements to prevent miscalculation and misinterpretation. Establishing norms, rules and principles for responsible space behaviours is a realistic and pragmatic way forward to enhance security and mitigate threats against space systems. We strongly support and actively contribute to the UN Open Ended Working Group (OEWG) on “Reducing space threats through norms, rules and principles of responsible behaviours” and encourage all States to engage positively and constructively in this process. The OEWG aims to build a common understanding of responsible space behaviours and to consider first proposals for norms, rules, and principles by submitting a consensus report to the UN General Assembly at its next session. The EU also underlines the importance of a meaningful follow-up process.

In conclusion, we reiterate our commitment to further contribute to the work and debates of the WG II by more thorough elaboration of the mentioned elements as well as the contribution of   additional proposals.

* North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.