Mr. Chair,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union.

The following countries align themselves with this statement: North Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania, the Republic of Moldova, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and San Marino.

In the context of its illegal war of aggression against Ukraine, Russia has increasingly adopted obstructive approaches to our fora, withdrawn from several of its obligations and commitments, and even resorted to irresponsible nuclear rhetoric and threats to use nuclear force. The situation in the Middle East further contributes to this complex setting.  The EU remains steadfast in its resolve to defend and further strengthen our collective achievements in the area of nuclear arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation.

The EU reiterates its unequivocal support for the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) as the cornerstone of the global nuclear non-proliferation regime and the essential foundation for the pursuit of nuclear disarmament, in accordance with its Article VI. We stress the importance of universalising the NPT and call on all States that have not yet done so to join the Treaty as non-nuclear-weapon States.

The EU stands ready to continue working with all committed States Parties towards a meaningful outcome at the NPT Review Conference in 2026 and look forward to discussions at the 2024 Preparatory Committee. We appreciate the reflections by the Chair to structure discussions at the Second session of the Preparatory Committee, including on improving transparency and accountability. We will continue to promote a comprehensive, balanced and substantive full implementation of the 2010 Review Conference Action Plan.

The EU reiterates our strong, resolute and continuous support for all three pillars of the NPT and will continue to promote the comprehensive, balanced and substantive full implementation of the 2010 Review Conference Action plan. The EU further stresses the need to implement all obligations under the NPT, and commitments from previous Review Conferences, including the need for concrete progress towards the full implementation of Article VI, with the ultimate goal of the total elimination of nuclear weapons taking into account the special responsibility of the states that possess the largest nuclear arsenals. We welcome the US offer to engage in bilateral arms control discussions with Russia and China without precondition and call on Russia and China to constructively respond to this offer. The EU is deeply concerned by Russia’s suspension of the New START Treaty. The EU calls on Russia to immediately return to full compliance with its obligations under the Treaty and engage in talks with the United States on a successor agreement. The EU condemns the agreement by Russia and Belarus to allow the deployment of Russian nuclear weapons on Belarusian territory.

Given the rapid, extensive and opaque build-up of its nuclear arsenal, we call on China for a meaningful engagement in arms control dialogue with a view to join future arms control agreements as a first step. We urge China to immediately take measures to improve transparency on its nuclear weapons and doctrine, refrain from further build-up, which is not in line with it commitments under NPT, and pursue risk reduction measures.

The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) is a crucial contribution to nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation. We calls on all States that have not yet done so, in particular those listed in Annex II, to sign and ratify it without preconditions or delay. We call on all States to abide by the moratorium on nuclear weapon test explosions or any other nuclear explosion, and refrain from any action contrary to the object and purpose of the Treaty. We deeply deplore Russia’s decision to revoke its ratification of the CTBT, and call on it to respect the object and purpose of the Treaty.

The EU supports the immediate commencement and early conclusion of negotiations in the Conference on Disarmament of a treaty banning the production of fissile material for use in nuclear weapons or other explosive devices (FMCT), in accordance with document CD/1299 and the mandate contained therein. Pending a future agreement on an FMCT, we reiterate our call on China and all other States concerned to declare and uphold an immediate moratorium on the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices.

The EU recognises the legitimate interest of non-nuclear-weapon States in receiving unequivocal security assurances from nuclear-weapon States against the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons, as part of binding and agreed security arrangements. We recognise that treaty-based assurances are available to nuclear-weapon-free zones, which already comprise more than 100 states and acknowledge the critical role of treaties establishing nuclear-weapon-free zones and encourage nuclear-weapon States to sign and ratify the relevant protocols of the treaties drawn up following the requisite consultations. The EU is ready to engage in discussions about future negotiations on Negative Security Assurances at the Conference on Disarmament. Russia’s violation of its commitment to refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or sovereignty of Ukraine, under the Budapest Memorandum of 1994, undermine the credibility of security assurances and pose grave threats to international peace and security.

The EU acknowledges the critical importance of existing nuclear weapons free zones for peace and security and remains committed to implementing the Resolution on the Middle East of the 1995 NPT Review Conference. We note the four sessions held so far of the UN Conference on the establishment of a Middle East zone free of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction, and are encouraged by their outcomes. We recall that such zones can only be established on the basis of arrangements freely arrived at between all States of the region.

The EU reaffirms the value of multilateral cooperation in advancing nuclear disarmament verification that can contribute to implementing Article VI of the NPT. We welcome the work of the Group of Governmental Experts to consider the role of nuclear verification in advancing nuclear disarmament and support initiatives such as the International Partnership for Nuclear Disarmament Verification and other relevant verification initiatives.

We recognise the important work of the International Atomic Energy Agency and that its safeguards system is a fundamental component of the non-proliferation regime. The Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement, together with the Additional Protocol, constitute the current verification standard and we call for their universalisation without delay.

The EU condemns the DPRK’s continued development of its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes and calls upon the DPRK to refrain from conducting another nuclear test. The DPRK must comply immediately with its obligations under UN Security Council resolutions by abandoning all its nuclear weapons, other WMDs, ballistic missile and nuclear programmes, in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner, and cease all related activities. The DPRK must 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.

The EU recalls the importance of export controls and multilateral export control regimes as crucial effective instruments of non-proliferation, designed to build trust among all actors of legitimate international trade.

The EU promotes the integration of a gender perspective into discussions and the equal participation of women and men at all fora of disarmament, non-proliferation and arms control.

Thank you, Mr. Chair.