Vol. 521 No. 3
78 Mrs. B. Moynihan-Cronin asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will outline the Government's view of the NPT review conference in New York; the steps the Government is taking to further promote the aims of the Dublin Declaration of 9 June 1998; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16841/00]
The sixth review conference of the states parties to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty concluded on 19 May 2000 with the adoption of a final document, in which the goals set by Ireland along with its new agenda partners in the 1998 Dublin Declaration were achieved. In particular, the final document includes an unequivocal undertaking by the nuclear weapon states to accomplish the total elimination of their nuclear arsenals leading to nuclear disarmament to which all state or parties are committed under Article VI of the treaty.
The final document includes a detailed agenda for the next steps in nuclear disarmament, including the commencement at the conference on disarmament in Geneva of negotiations on a fissionable material cut-off treaty which will halt the production of fissile material for weapons purposes for all time. Certain new principles have also been established in the final document, including the application of the principle of irreversibility to nuclear disarmament measures and increased transparency by the nuclear weapon states with regard to their nuclear weapons capabilities.
There have been far reaching undertakings regarding concrete measures to further reduce the operational status of nuclear weapons systems, and a diminishing role for nuclear weapons in security policies to minimise the risk of these weapons ever being used. The question of reductions in non-strategic nuclear weapons has also been addressed.
