Chapter X Arms Control, Disarmament and
Non-Proliferation
In recent years, some positive progress has been made in the fields of
international arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation, but the
proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and their means of delivery
and other issues have become major factors affecting the international security
situation. The Chinese government maintains that the international community
should safeguard the international regime of arms control, disarmament and
non-proliferation treaties, promote its universality and reinforce its
effectiveness and authority; that it should persist in multilateralism and give
full play to the role and influence of the multilateral arms control,
disarmament and non-proliferation treaty organs; that it should strive to meet
the challenges brought about by the proliferation of WMD through political and
diplomatic means on the basis of the existing international laws; and that it
should address both the symptoms and root causes and adopt comprehensive
measures, which means that it should take into consideration security threats
such as proliferation of WMD while not neglecting the social and economic root
causes of such threats.
Committed to the
Non-Proliferation Efforts
The proliferation of WMD and their
means of delivery is detrimental to world peace and security, so is it to
China's own security. Non-proliferation is in the common interest of all
countries, including China, and it has become an international
consensus.
China attaches great importance to non-proliferation.
It pursues a policy of not supporting, not encouraging and not assisting other
countries to develop WMD. It resolutely opposes the proliferation of WMD and
actively participates in the diplomatic efforts of the international community
to deal with non-proliferation issues. The Chinese government published a white
paper entitled China's Non-Proliferation Policy and Measures in December
2003.
China has put in place a comprehensive legal system for
non-proliferation export control, covering the exports of nuclear, biological,
chemical, missile and other sensitive items and technologies. It has adopted the
international export control measures, including export registration system,
end-user and end-use certification system, licensing system, list control method
and "catch-all" principle, and has stipulated corresponding penalties for
breaches of these laws and regulations. China's non-proliferation export control
measures are basically in conformity with the current international
practice.
The relevant departments in China have adopted and will
continue to adopt forceful measures to ensure the implementation of the relevant
regulations and laws. China has set up an inter-agency approval and coordination
mechanism on export control and a national expert supporting system for export
control. It has promulgated and implemented the Export Licensing Catalogue of
Sensitive Items and Technologies. It is revising the related regulations on
non-proliferation export control and the corresponding control lists, and has
set up an emergency coordination mechanism in order to promptly and effectively
handle proliferation contingencies. It imposes penalties on activities which
violate the non-proliferation export control laws and
regulations.
China has actively developed its relations with relevant
multilateral export-control regimes. It has formally joined the Nuclear
Suppliers Group and has applied for its accession to the Missile Technology
Control Regime. China has established a dialogue mechanism with the Wassenaar
Arrangement and kept contact with the Australia Group. It has also strengthened
information exchanges and law-enforcement cooperation on non-proliferation with
relevant countries.
China is in favor that the United Nations
plays its due role in the non-proliferation field, and hopes that the UN
Security Council Resolution 1540 on non-proliferation will be implemented
effectively. In October 2004, China submitted a report on Chinese government's
implementation of the Resolution to the Security Council's Non-proliferation
Commission. China takes an open attitude toward all proposals that may help
safeguard and strengthen the international non-proliferation regime, and is
ready to have in-depth discussions with other parties in this
regard.
Promoting the International Arms Control and
Disarmament Process
At present, the key to pushing
forward the international arms control and disarmament process is to break the
deadlock at the Conference on Disarmament (CD) in Geneva. In August 2003, China
announced that it accepted the amended mandate of the Ad Hoc Committee on the
Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space (PAROS)in the Five Ambassadors'
Proposal, and is ready to participate in reaching consensus through consultation
on the Five Ambassadors' Proposal on the Program of Work. It hopes that the
other parties concerned would give positive response.
China
supports the Conference on Disarmament in its efforts to start substantive work
on the following four topics: nuclear disarmament, the Fissile Material Cut-off
Treaty (FMCT), security assurances to non-nuclear-weapon states, and prevention
of an arms race in outer space.
China consistently stands for
complete prohibition and thorough destruction of nuclear weapons. It always
pursues a policy of no first use of nuclear weapons, and undertakes
unconditionally not to use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against
non-nuclear-weapon states or nuclear-weapon-free zones. China did not and will
never engage in a nuclear arms race with any other country. It supports the
international community in its efforts to start substantive discussions on
nuclear disarmament.
The FMCT is of great significance to
preventing the proliferation of nuclear weapons and facilitating the nuclear
disarmament process. China supports an early conclusion of the treaty through
negotiations.
In the current situation, the importance and
urgency of providing security assurances for non-nuclear-weapon states has
become more prominent. China supports the negotiation and conclusion of an
international legally binding instrument on this issue. China is the only
country among the five nuclear weapon states to commit itself not to use or
threaten to use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear-weapon states or
nuclear-weapon-free zones. China appeals to the four other nuclear weapon states
to make the same commitment.
Outer space is the common property
of mankind. China hopes that the international community would take action as
soon as possible to conclude an international legal instrument on preventing the
weaponization of and arms race in outer space through negotiations, to ensure
the peaceful use of outer space.
China favors discussions on and
settlement of issues such as "terrorism and WMD," "radioactive weapons" and
"observance of international treaties on disarmament, arms control and
non-proliferation" within multilateral arms control framework.
In
the other international multilateral arms control processes, China has continued
to play a constructive role. It has taken an active part in the multilateral
efforts to enhance the effectiveness of the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC),
thus assuming a positive role in maintaining and pushing forward the
multilateral arms-control process in the biological field. China supports the
efforts of the ASEAN countries, the Central Asian countries and other
neighboring countries to establish nuclear-weapon-free zones and has reached
agreement in principle with the ASEAN countries on the Protocol to the Southeast
Asia Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone Treaty, and participated in the consultations
between the five nuclear weapon states and the Central Asian countries on the
Central Asian Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone Treaty and its protocol. It also
participated in the First (Disarmament) Committee sessions of the UN General
Assembly, the UN Disarmament Commission meetings, the preparatory committee
sessions for the 2005 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the
Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), and the sessions of the Conference
of the States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) and its first
review conference.
Fulfiling
International Arms Control and Disarmament
Obligations
China conscientiously honors the NPT,
consistently stands for maintaining its authority and promoting its
universality.
China supports and participates in the safeguards system
of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). China was the first among the
five nuclear weapon states to have completed the domestic legal procedures
necessary for the entry into force of the Protocol Additional to the Agreement
Between China and IAEA for the Application of Safeguards in China.
The
Chinese government firmly upholds the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty
(CTBT) and supports its early entry into force. Before the treaty becomes
effective, China will stay committed to the moratorium on nuclear testing. China
attaches great importance to the work of the Preparatory Commission for the
Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), and supports and
takes part in its work.
China continues to earnestly fulfil its
obligations under the CWC, and received 11 inspections by the Organization for
the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons in 2003. The Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region has started to implement China's obligations under the
Convention, and the Macao Special Administrative Region has stepped up the
relevant preparatory work. In the same year, China continued to submit report to
the United Nations on its confidence-building measures in accordance with the
BWC.
Today, large quantities of chemical weapons abandoned by
Japan remain on Chinese soil, which pose a grave threat to the lives and
property of the Chinese people and to the ecological environment. China urges
Japan to earnestly fulfil its obligations under the CWC for the destruction of
these weapons, and commence as soon as possible the substantive destruction
process in accordance with the Memorandum of Understanding Between the
Government of the People's Republic of China and the Government of Japan on the
Destruction of the Chemical Weapons Abandoned by Japan in
China.
Participating in Humanitarian Efforts in the Arms
Control Field
China supports the leading role played by
the United Nations in combating the illicit trade in small arms and light
weapons (SALW),and attaches great importance to and conscientiously implements
the Program of Action adopted at the UN Conference on SALW. It supports the
negotiation and conclusion of an international instrument on identifying and
tracing illicit SALW, and participates in the negotiations with a constructive
attitude. China signed the Firearms Protocol in 2002, and is now making
preparations for the ratification of the protocol.
The Chinese
government continues to support and take part in the work of the Group of
Governmental Experts of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons, and has
contributed to the progress made so far in the work. Having ratified the
amendment to Article 1 of the Convention, China is now preparing to ratify the
Protocol on Explosive Remnants of War.
China attaches great importance to the solution of the
humanitarian issue arising from landmines. While strictly implementing the
Amended Landmine Protocol, it is strengthening communications and exchanges with
the states parties to the Ottawa Convention. China continues to provide
assistance in international mine clearance efforts. After providing assistance
to Eritrea in this regard in 2002, China sent another group of mine clearance
experts to that country to give guidance on de-mining operations in 2003,
trained a total of 120 mine clearance specialists for Eritrea, and provided
Eritrea with de-mining equipment. China joined the Mine Action Supporting Group,
headquartered in New York, in 2003. China and the Australian Network of the
International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) co-sponsored the Humanitarian
Mine/UXO Clearance Technology and Cooperation Workshop in Kunming, Yunnan
Province, in April 2004.
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