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CENTRAL ASIA TO CREATE NUCLEAR-FREE ZONE

RIA Novosti

TASHKENT, FEBRUARY 7 (RIA Novosti's Abu-Ali Niyazmatov) - On February 7-9 Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan, is to host a meeting of a regional expert group for drafting a treaty on a nuclear-free zone in Central Asia.

Talking to RIA Novosti here today, Ilkhom Zokirov, spokesman for the Uzbek Foreign Ministry, noted that the meeting was designed to coordinate the common position of Central Asian countries as regards the text of the said regional nuclear-free zone treaty, with due account to specific proposals and comments by nuclear powers, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the UN Secretariat's legal issues department concerning the draft treaty's Samarkand text.

The signing of this treaty and the establishment of the Central Asian nuclear-free zone must become the first regional initiative of global significance to be translated into life, Mr. Zokirov added.

Moreover, the appearance of a nuclear-free zone would enhance the importance of the region and its countries in the context of ensuring comprehensive security, Mr. Zokirov said. Central Asian countries would therefore make a substantial contribution to fighting international terrorism and preventing terrorist threats with the use of nuclear weapons and other mass-destruction weapons, Mr. Zokirov said in conclusion.