Vienna - information office - September 25
The State of Qatar affirmed that the total elimination of nuclear weapons is the only absolute guarantee that such weapons should not be used or threatened its use, calling for effective nuclear disarmament measures, in accordance with international treaties, and a specific practical mechanism for the Middle East to be cleared of nuclear weapons.
This came in Qatar's statement delivered by HE Ambassador of the State of Qatar to the Republic of Austria and Permanent Representative to the United Nations and international organizations in Vienna Sheikh Ali bin Jassim Al-Thani, before the annual General Conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
His excellency regretted that the resolution of 1995 NPT Review Conference (Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons) in the Middle East on the denuclearization of the region had not been implemented and called for sincere efforts to implement that resolution and to find a practical mechanism that would follow a timetable for the establishment of a region free of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East, the final outcome of which would be Israel's accession to the NPT as a non-nuclear state, as progressing on that subject would have positive consequences for the 2020 Review Conference.
HE Sheikh Ali bin Jassim Al-Thani stressed that the repeated failure of the conference, as what happened at the 2015 Review Conference, would harm the credibility of the NPT and the non-proliferation mechanism as a whole.
With regard to security and nuclear safety policies, His Excellency said that the State of Qatar was committed to the implementation of the Agency's standards for such policies, the fight against terrorism and the illicit trafficking in nuclear material.
He pointed out that the State of Qatar has witnessed an important development during the recent period through the issuance of Law No. (3) of 2018, which includes the National System for the accounting and control of nuclear materials, which was enacted on 12/4/2018. This law is concerned with the inventory of nuclear facilities and materials and the issuance and withdrawal of licenses for the practice of national institutions to deal with nuclear materials. The law also criminalizes acts that contravene Qatar's nuclear obligations. The law also defines the National Committee for the Prohibition of Weapons as a regulatory body responsible for implementing the said law in the State of Qatar.
He added that the State of Qatar, in an effort to strengthen the international nuclear security framework, to address the ongoing challenges in this region and to build an enhanced, sustainable and comprehensive global security architecture, announced on 13 July 2018 its accession to the Nuclear Security Contact Group (NSCG) and its adhering to the objectives that the Group seeks to achieve in the area of nuclear security.
He stressed the importance attached by the State of Qatar to the technical cooperation program as the main instrument of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to facilitate the transfer of peaceful nuclear technology to the Agency's member states, and called for adequate resources to be made available to carry out its tasks optimally.
Concluding the statement, HE Sheikh Ali bin Jassim Al-Thani reiterated Qatar's firm support to the IAEA for its role in controlling nuclear energy and its applications in all peaceful fields, and expressed the gratitude of the State of Qatar for the cooperation and expertise provided by the Agency in the implementation of projects speeding up Qatar's development programs and its scientific advancement.