The annual NATO Conference on WMD Arms Control, Disarmament and Non-Proliferation closed today. The conference, held 6 and 7 May in Split, was attended by more than 100 representatives from 50 countries as well as a large number of representatives of international institutions, who discussed topical security issues and challenges, notably the UN-backed global disarmament process, North Korean nuclear and ballistic programme, and the security situation on the Korean peninsula. The conference also discussed Syria’s possible use of chemical weapons as well as the lack of progress in the talks on the Middle East as a nuclear-weapons-free zone.
Also in attendance were UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Angela Kane, the EU Special Envoy for Non-proliferation and Disarmament Jacek Bylica, Undersecretary at Finland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and mediator in the talks on the Middle East Jaakko Laajava, and the US Assistant Secretary of State Thomas Countryman.
The large number of attendees from NATO’s partner countries such as Algeria, Egypt, Kuwait, Pakistan, India, Israel, UAE and Oman contributed to the discussion on the efficiency of the UN in disarmament as well as the US role in the Middle East and the future of the region as a nuclear-weapons-free zone.
There was mention of how lack of trust among the interested parties and the unwillingness of certain countries to take resolute but unpopular steps was the reason why many of the processes in the Middle East have ground to a halt. The attendees underlined to need to restart the negotiations which would first lead to trust and then to agreements.
The Split conference was the ninth in a row. The previous ones were held in Rome (2004), Sofia (2005), Vilnius (2007), Berlin (2008), Warsaw (2009), Prague (2010), Bergen (2011) and Budapest (2012).