NPT/CONF.2000/PC.I/32 18 April 1997 

ORIGINAL: ENGLISH

First session

New York, 7-18 April 1997

Report of the Preparatory Committee on its first session

I. INTRODUCTION

1. At its fifty-first session, the General Assembly, in its resolution 51/45 A of 10 December 1996, took note of the decision of the parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, following appropriate consultations, to hold the first meeting of the Preparatory Committee in New York from 7 to 18 April 1997.

2. Accordingly, the first session of the Preparatory Committee was opened on 7 April, by Mr. Evgeniy Gorkovskiy, Officer-in-Charge and Deputy Director of the Centre for Disarmament Affairs of the Department of Political Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat.

3. The following 149 States parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons participated in the work of the Preparatory Committee at its first session: Albania, Algeria, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belgium, Benin, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Canada, Central African Republic, Chile, China, Colombia, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Djibouti, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Fiji, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Holy See, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Iraq, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakstan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia (Federated States of), Monaco, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Russian Federation, Samoa, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Syrian Arab Republic, Tajikistan, Thailand, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, United Republic of Tanzania, United States of America, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

4. The Preparatory Committee held 15 meetings, of which summary records were provided for the opening meeting (NPT/CONF.2000/PC.I/SR.1), the general debate (NPT/CONF.2000/PC.I/SR.2-3) and the closing meetings (NPT/CONF.2000/PC.I/SR.13, 15) in accordance with the Committee's decision. The summary records are issued separately as annex I to the present report.

5. Mrs. Hannelore Hoppe, Senior Political Affairs Officer of the Centre for Disarmament Affairs, served as Secretary of the Committee. Mr. Mohamed Elbaradei, Assistant Director General for External Relations, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Vienna; Mr. Berhanykun Andemicael, Representative of the Director General of IAEA to the United Nations in New York; Ms. Merle Opelz, Head, IAEA Office at Geneva; and Ms. Jan Priest, Head, Safeguards and Non-Proliferation Policy Section, Division of External Relations, IAEA, Vienna, represented the Agency.

II. SUBSTANTIVE AND PROCEDURAL ISSUES

A. Organization of work of the Preparatory Committee

6. With regard to the chairmanship of the various sessions of the Preparatory Committee and the presidency of the 2000 Review Conference, an understanding had been reached among delegations, according to which a representative of the Western Group should be proposed to chair the first session, a representative of the Group of Eastern European States should be proposed to chair the second session, a representative of the Group of Non-Aligned and other States parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons should be proposed to chair the third session and a representative of the Group of Non-Aligned and other States parties to the Treaty should be proposed for the presidency of the 2000 Review Conference. All groups were encouraged to propose the representatives for the chairmanship of the various sessions of the Preparatory Committee and for the presidency of the 2000 Review Conference at their earliest possible convenience.

7. Pursuant to that understanding, Mr. Pasi Patokallio (Finland), the representative of the Western Group, was proposed to chair the first session. At its first meeting, on 7 April, the Committee unanimously elected Mr. Patokallio to serve as Chairman of the first session. At its 15th meeting, on 18 April, the Committee also decided that Mr. Tadeusz Strulak (Poland), the representative of the Group of Eastern European States, would be the Chairman of its second session. It was also decided that when not serving as Chairman, the Chairmen of the first and second sessions of the Preparatory Committee would serve as Vice-Chairmen of the Committee. It was further decided that a representative of the Group of Non-Aligned and other States parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons should be proposed to serve as Vice-Chairmen of the second session.

8. At its first meeting, on 7 April, the Committee adopted the following agenda (NPT/CONF.2000/PC.I/1/Rev.1):

9. In the course of the discussion of agenda item 5 on the organization of work of the Preparatory Committee, the following decisions were taken:

At its 15th meeting, the Committee provisionally agreed, subject to further consultations by the Chairman, that the second session would be held from 27 April to 8 May 1998 in Geneva and that the third session would take place from 12 to 23 April 1999 in New York.

10. The Committee set aside two meetings for a general debate on issues related to all aspects of the work of the Preparatory Committee, in the course of which 38 statements were made. The statements are reflected in the summary records of those meetings (NPT/CONF.2000/PC.I/SR.2-3).

11. The Committee held a total of 9 meetings for a substantive discussion under agenda item 4 entitled "Preparatory work for the review of the operation of the Treaty in accordance with article VIII, paragraph 3, taking into account the decisions and the resolution adopted by the 1995 Review and Extension Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons". In doing so, the Committee used as a basis for a structured discussion the three sets of issues (clusters) contained in annex V to the Final Report of the Preparatory Committee to the 1995 Review and Extension Conference (NPT/CONF.1995/1).

12. During the session, the Committee had before it the following documents:

13. A list of the delegations to the Preparatory Committee, including States parties, observer States, specialized agencies and regional intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, is contained in document NPT/CONF.2000/PC.I/INF.3.

B. Organization of the 2000 Review Conference

14. The Preparatory Committee, in conformity with its task to prepare for the 2000 Review Conference, considered issues contained in agenda item 7. It took the following actions:

(a) Dates and venue of the Conference

At its 15th meeting, on 18 April, the Committee provisionally agreed, subject to further consultations by the Chairman, that the Review Conference would be held from 24 April to 19 May 2000 in New York.

(b) Appointment of the Secretary-General

The Committee decided to invite the Secretary-General of the United Nations, in consultation with the members of the Preparatory Committee, to nominate an official to act as provisional Secretary-General of the 2000 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, a nomination which would later be confirmed by the Conference itself.

The Committee decided to request the Secretariat to provide for its second session an estimate of the costs of the 2000 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and its preparation.

III. RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE NEXT SESSION OF THE

PREPARATORY COMMITTEE

15. During the course of the session, the Chairman held a number of informal consultations in the process of which delegations put forward their views and proposals on recommendations to the next session of the Preparatory Committee and on draft recommendations to the 2000 Review Conference. As a result of those consultations, the Chairman put forward a working paper which is annexed to the present report (annex II). The Committee recommended that at its second session the official documents and other proposals submitted by delegations during the first session of the Preparatory Committee as contained in annex II (para. 4 and the appendix) will be taken into account during further work on draft recommendations to the Review Conference and also the working paper submitted by the Chairman which will be interpreted in the light of the official documents and other proposals made by delegations as contained in annex II (para. 4 and the appendix).

16. The Committee recommended that at its second session, it should continue the consideration of all aspects of the Treaty in a structured and balanced manner, in accordance with agenda item 4 entitled "Preparatory work for the review of the operation of the Treaty in accordance with article VIII, paragraph 3, taking into account the decisions and the resolution adopted by the 1995 Review and Extension Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons".

17. Following approval of paragraph 16, the Chairman made a formal statement which is contained in document NPT/CONF.2000/PC.I/31.

NPT/CONF. 2000/PC.I/31

18 April 1997

ORIGINAL: ENGLISH

First session

New York, 7-18 April 1997

CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT

It is understood that within the existing agenda and in accordance with the methods of work adopted at the first session, the Committee also recommended that time should be allocated at the second session for the discussion on and the consideration of any proposals on the following subject areas, without prejudice to the importance of other issues:

It is noted that there was no objection to my making this statement.

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