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STATEMENT BY AMBASSADOR RODOLFO BENÍTEZ VERSON, DEPUTY PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF CUBA, AT THE CLOSING SESSION OF THE UNITED NATIONS DISARMAMENT COMMISSION
New York, 21 April 2011.

 

Mr. Chairman,

We fully support the statement by Indonesia on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement.

Cuba regrets that the Disarmament Commission, for the twelfth consecutive time, has concluded again their works without the adoption of substantive recommendations.

It is of particular concern that today we conclude, without concrete results, the three-year review cycle of two highly significant issues such as the progress towards nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, and the elements of a draft declaration of the 2010s as the fourth disarmament decade.

It is beneficial to all to have a body of universal membership enabling thorough deliberations on very important matters. However, that is not enough. Our mandate includes not only to deliberate, but to produce concrete recommendations, and we must admit we have not fulfilled it.

Some refer to a supposed “momentum” in the area of disarmament, but reality does not endorse such statements. What happened this year at the Disarmament Commission is not an isolated event. It is no mere coincidence that the Conference on Disarmament has also spent too many years without commencing substantive negotiations, or that dozens of relevant resolutions on disarmament continue to be adopted by the General Assembly, which simply are not implemented.

Cuba supports the optimization of the UN disarmament machinery, including the Disarmament Commission. Nevertheless, we do not share the pretention of some to question the significance of this Commission or to ascribe the lack of concrete results to the inefficiency of its working methods. Such approach seeks to conceal the true obstacles we face.

The main difficulty of the disarmament machinery lies, first of all, in the lack of true political will by some States to achieve actual progress, particularly on nuclear disarmament.
Cuba will continue to work on strengthening the key role of the Disarmament Commission and the UN General Assembly in the area of disarmament.
Mr. Chairman,

We reiterate that the mere existence of nuclear weapons and the doctrines that prescribe their possession and use are a threat to international peace and security. That is why nuclear disarmament is and should continue to be the highest priority in the field of disarmament.
It is simply unacceptable that in today’s world there are still tens of thousands of nuclear weapons with the capacity to destroy the world many times over.
Cuba will continue to work tirelessly in this Commission and other fora for the complete prohibition and elimination of nuclear weapons from our planet
Mr. Chairman,
The fact that the Commission has not agreed on concrete recommendations on a draft declaration of this decade as the Fourth Disarmament Decade cannot give rise to conformism and resignation. In no way we can stop our efforts to declare the Fourth Disarmament Decade, the importance of which could not me seriously questioned by anyone. We hope the General Assembly can address this matter in a timely manner and take the necessary decisions.
Concerning “Practical confidence-building measures in the field of conventional arms”, Cuba supports those measures as a means to strengthen international peace and security, as long as they fully respect the principles and purposes of the Charter of the United Nations.

Due to its voluntary nature, confidence-building measures cannot be imposed and no single recipe is admitted.

As truly effective confidence-building measures, Cuba proposes to start by immediately creating a United Nations Fund, to which at least half of the current global military expenditures would be allocated, in order to address the economic and social development needs of countries in need.

Likewise, we propose without further delay the creation of an International Convention to eliminate nuclear weapons within 25 years and prohibit them for good.

I would like to conclude, Mr. Chairman, by expressing our appreciation to you and the rest of the Bureau for your work.

We particularly appreciate the indefatigable efforts of the chairmen of the three Working Groups, who did no cease in their important work. Likewise, we thank the entire Secretariat team for their valuable support.

Thank you.