KUALA LUMPUR, July 12 — Asean said it is open to any individual Nuclear Weapon States (NWS) to sign the Protocol of the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone (SEANWFZ), reaffirming the region’s commitment to remain free of nuclear weapons and all other weapons of mass destruction.
Asean foreign ministers noted that the SEANWFZ Commission executive committee continues to explore the possibility of allowing individual NWS to sign the protocol without reservations and provide prior formal written assurance of their commitment.
“We reaffirmed our commitment to continuously engage all the NWS, including those with reservations, and intensify efforts of all parties to resolve all outstanding issues in accordance with the objectives and principles of the SEANWFZ.
“We encouraged our Asean experts to explore ways to bridge the differences, including the possibility of engaging with the NWS experts,” the ministers said in a joint communique issued today following the 58th Asean Foreign Ministers’ Meeting here on Wednesday.
The AMM and related meetings, including the SEANWFZ Commission meeting, concluded at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre here yesterday.
On Thursday, Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan said China — one of the five countries recognised as NWS under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) will sign the SEANWFZ as soon as all documentation is ready.
On July 2, Mohamad reportedly said Russia had indicated readiness to sign the protocol, while the United States was still reviewing the treaty.
The ministers also reaffirmed their commitment to enhancing the profile of the SEANWFZ globally, including through engaging other nuclear weapon-free zones (NWFZs).
In this connection, they welcomed the adoption of the Asean-sponsored biennial resolution on the SEANWFZ Treaty by the 78th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on December 4, 2023, which reiterated the importance of the treaty in contributing to international peace and security.
“We tasked the relevant officials to work towards the submission of the biennial SEANWFZ Resolution at the First Committee of the 80th Session of the UNGA, which will reaffirm the treaty’s important contribution towards strengthening the security of states within the zone and towards enhancing international peace and security,” they said.
SEANWFZ is one of five NWFZs. The other four are in Latin America and the Caribbean, the South Pacific, Africa, and Central Asia.
They also looked forward to the entry into force of the addendum to the SEANWFZ treaty and subsequent accession of Timor-Leste to the treaty by the 47th Asean Summit, this October, which would reinforce the region’s commitment to nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation.
“To this end, we underscored the need to expedite our respective internal legal procedures to facilitate Timor-Leste’s timely accession,” they said.
The ministers also called on all states parties to the NPT to renew their commitment to its full and effective implementation, particularly Article VI, to redouble efforts to protect the credibility and integrity of the NPT, and to rally towards a much-desired meaningful consensual outcome document at the 11th NPT Review Conference in 2026.
“In this regard, we supported the nomination of Vietnam as president of the 11th NPT Review Conference,” they said.
The ministers also stressed the importance of the full and effective implementation of the SEANWFZ, including through the Plan of Action to Strengthen the Implementation of SEANWFZ 2023-2027.
— Bernama
