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Romania continues to be committed to a nuclear-weapon-free world project, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bogdan Aurescu said on Tuesday, underlining, in this sense, the need for negotiations in good faith and the inclusion in this process of states that have such weapons.
The head of the Romanian diplomacy spoke at the opening of the 16th Annual NATO Conference on Weapons of Mass Destruction, Arms Control, Disarmament and Non-Proliferation, held in Bucharest in hybrid format - in video-conferencing system.
"Together with its allies and partners, Romania remains deeply committed to upholding and fully implementing, in their letter and spirit, the current arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation agreements. I would like to reaffirm the strong support for the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (the NPT). The NPT stays as the cornerstone of the global nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament architecture," Aurescu said.
In this regard, he recalled that this year, on March 5, the 50th anniversary of the Treaty's entry into force was celebrated.
"The NPT is a historic success and continues to represent our best tool for the global efforts to achieve a world without nuclear weapons, in accordance with the principle of undiminished security for all. On this 50th year, we must recommit to reinforcing the NPT. There is no alternative to this Treaty. Romania remains committed to the goal of a world free of nuclear weapons," Aurescu said.
To achieve this goal, Aurescu said, a "progressive approach based on pragmatic and realistic measures that could provide real and lasting progress on disarmament" is needed.
"Accomplishing tangible results on nuclear disarmament requires cooperation and a careful and lucid consideration of the international security environment. Banning nuclear weapons without engaging the nuclear-weapon states is not effective and does not enhance international security and stability. A true viable road to nuclear disarmament should focus on improving the strategic context. For providing real and lasting progress on disarmament all parties must work together towards the security environment more conducive to arms control and disarmament," the minister pointed out.
Further on, Minister Aurescu stressed that "good faith negotiations on strategic arms control are key to international security."
At the same time, Aurescu spoke about the current situation. "The USA put forth a substantive proposal as a basis for extending the new start and I welcome the progress achieved so far. We would also consider appropriate an extension of the participation framework by the inclusion of China," the Romanian minister added.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also spoke at the opening of the event.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the guests of the working sessions include Gustavo Zlauvinen, President-designate of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference, and Izumi Nakamitsu, UN Under-Secretary-General and High Representative for Disarmament Affairs. The conference was also attended by the Secretary of State for Strategic Affairs, Dan Neculaescu.
