11 August 1998

TEXT: SCHUESSEL WELCOMES NEGOTIATIONS ON FISSILE MISSILE TREATY

(President of Council of European Union) (400)



Vienna -- Wolfgang Schuessel, foreign minister of Austria and
president-in-office of the Council of the European Union (EU),
welcomed the Conference on Disarmament's decision to establish a
committee to negotiate a treaty banning the production of fissile
material for nuclear weapons and other nuclear explosive devices.


"We have frequently reiterated the importance of such a treaty which
will cap the fissile material stockpiles available for use in nuclear
weapons and strengthen the international nuclear non-proliferation
regime by adding new˙20constraints, including verification
arrangements on all relevant˙20facilities. It˙20will thus constitute a
significant contribution towards the achievement of both nuclear
non-proliferation and nuclear disarmament," said Schuessel in an
August 11 statement issued by the Austrian Presidency of the European
Union.


Following is the text of the statement:



(Begin text)



PRESIDENT OF THE COUNCIL WOLFGANG SCHUSSEL WELCOMES START OF
NEGOTIATIONS
August 11, 1998

Foreign Minister Schuessel, in his capacity as President of the
Council of the European Union, welcomed the decision taken today by
the Conference on Disarmament (CD) in Geneva to establish an Ad Hoc
Committee and to start negotiations on a treaty banning the production
of fissile material for nuclear weapons and other nuclear explosive
devices (Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty - FMCT).


With the launching of the negotiations on a FMCT, the realisation of
the next logical step after the conclusion of the Comprehensive Test
Ban Treaty in 1996˙20on the road towards nuclear non-proliferation and
nuclear disarmament is within reach. Since the 1995 NPT Review and
Extension Conference when agreement on this objective was achieved,
the European Union has steadfastly supported the commencement of such
negotiations in the CD. The decision taken by the CD today was based
on a proposal which Austria had made earlier this year.


"We have frequently reiterated the importance of such a treaty which
will cap the fissile material stockpiles available for use in nuclear
weapons and strengthen the international nuclear non-proliferation
regime by adding new˙20constraints, including verification
arrangements on all relevant˙20facilities. It˙20will thus constitute a
significant contribution towards the achievement of both nuclear
non-proliferation and nuclear disarmament," said Schuessel.


In view of the recent nuclear tests in India and Pakistan, the
consensus decision to start negotiations comes at a crucial moment.


(End text)




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