Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 17 Dec 2002

Vol. 559 No. 5

Written Answers. - Foreign Policy.

John Gormley

Question:

149 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if the Government has raised at the United Nations Security Council or at any other body sending teams of inspectors to investigate weapons of mass destruction that may have been developed by India, Pakistan, Israel, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea or any other country; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26781/02]

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr. Cowen)

The International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, is responsible for nuclear safety and verification and security of nuclear material and installations. India, Pakistan and Israel are not states parties to the non-proliferation treaty, nor have they entered into comprehensive safeguards agreements with the IAEA. Consequently, IAEA inspections cannot take place in those countries. Ireland has always called on these three countries to adhere to the non-proliferation treaty. Ireland strongly supports United Nations Security Council Resolution 1172, passed in June 1998, which, inter alia, calls on India and Pakistan to become parties to the non-proliferation treaty and the comprehensive test ban treaty. The resolution also calls for an immediate stop to their nuclear weapons development programmes including development of ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons.

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea admitted on 4 October that it had a programme to enrich uranium for nuclear weapons. This put them in violation of the non-proliferation treaty. Ireland considers that the serious breach of international obligations in general and of the non-proliferation treaty in particular this admission represents should be reflected in the response of the international community. Ireland fully supported the EU Council conclusions of 19 November which reiterated concerns regarding the nuclear programme and strongly urged the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to come into full compliance with all of its international commitments. The Council underlined the point that the future of North Korea's relations with the international community is conditional on P'yongyang's prompt and verifiable actions to dismantle its programme. The EU continues to consult with key partners, such as South Korea, Japan, the USA, China and Russia.

Ireland supports strongly the resolution passed by the board of governors of the IAEA which,inter alia, calls on North Korea to allow a senior team from the IAEA to visit the DPRK without delay to inspect their uranium enrichment programme. With regard to other weapons of mass destruction, 145 countries are states parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention. All states parties to the convention are subject to inspections by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, OPCW. Under the terms of the CWC, site inspections can be carried out to establish if states parties are engaged in weapons programmes. India and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea are not states parties to the Bacteriological and Toxins Weapons Convention, BTWC. Ireland supports universal adherence to this important convention and we have advocated the further strengthening of the BTWC in the area of verification to allow for inspections of facilities which are suspected of being capable of producing bacteriological and toxin weapons.