Tuesday, June 28, 2016

Read Nuclear Suppliers Group’s Public Statement on Seoul Plenary Meeting

SEOUL, REPUBLIC OF KOREA, 23–24 JUNE 2016
The twenty-sixth Plenary Meeting of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) 1 , chaired by
Ambassador Song Young-wan of the Republic of Korea, was held in Seoul, Korea, on 23 and 24
June 2016.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea, H.E. Yun Byung-se, welcomed the
Participating Governments on behalf of the Korean Government, reaffirmed his country’s strong
support for NSG activities and noted the significant contribution of the NSG to global efforts to
counter ever evolving nuclear threats, thus substantially reinforcing the spirit and purposes of the
Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). The Foreign Minister also
highlighted the importance of the thorough implementation of UNSCR 2270 (2016) for the
resolution of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) nuclear issue and asked the
NSG to continue its efforts to cut off the DPRK’s access to its nuclear program’s supply chain.
Within the framework of the NSG’s mandate, the Group expressed its concerns regarding
continued global proliferation activities and reaffirmed its determination to continue to cooperate
closely in order to deter, hinder and prevent the transfer of controlled items or technology that
could contribute to nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices. Participating
Governments reiterated their firm support for the full, complete and effective implementation of
the NPT as the cornerstone of the international non-proliferation regime.
Deploring the nuclear test conducted on 6 January 2016 by the DPRK, the Participating
Governments reconfirmed their commitment to UNSCRs 1718 (2006), 1874 (2009), 2087 (2013),
2094 (2013) and 2270 (2016) which strongly condemned the DPRK’s challenge to the nuclear
non-proliferation regime and underlined that export of all controlled items within the NSG to the
DPRK is prohibited according to the abovementioned resolutions.
The NSG welcomed the announcement on 16 January 2016 of the Implementation Day of the
Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Following up on the Extraordinary Plenary held
on 21 January and 26 April this year, the NSG expressed interest in continuing to be briefed by
the Procurement Working Group coordinator on the procurement channel established under the
JCPOA and UNSCR 2231 (2015) as appropriate. The NSG agreed to keep this under active consideration.
Participating Governments called upon all States to exercise vigilance and to ensure effective implementation of all UNSCRs relevant to the work and purposes of the NSG.
The NSG had discussions on the issue of “Technical, Legal and Political Aspects of the of non-NPT States in the NSG” and decided to continue its discussion.
At the Plenary meeting, the NSG also
• maintained its focus on technical issues important to the implementation of the Control Lists by exchanging views and agreeing on a number of proposals to clarify and update the NSG Control Lists and Guidelines;
• discussed and reaffirmed  the importance of balancing confidentiality with transparency in NSG activities; and the significance of updating the NSG Guidelines to keep pace with the evolving global security landscape and a fast-paced nuclear and nuclear-related industry.
Outreach
• welcomed the growing number of States that have harmonized their national export control systems with the NSG Guidelines and Control lists;
• discussed options for enhancing outreach such as dedicated briefings for and meetings with interested non-NSG partners on the work of the Group;  increased visibility of the NSG at appropriate international meetings to improve public awareness about the work and mission of the Group; and a dedicated response to non-NSG partners seeking assistance and practical experience in developing, updating, strengthening and implementing national export control systems; and
• shared information on all aspects of the 2008 Statement on Civil Nuclear Cooperation with India and discussed the NSG relationship with India.
The NSG Plenary invited all nuclear supplier states to express their responsible approach to nuclear exports by adhering to the NSG Guidelines.
Finally, the NSG confirmed that Switzerland will assume the Chairmanship of the NSG from 2017 to 2018 and welcomed Switzerland’s plans to host the next Plenary.
About Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG)
  The NSG is a Group of 48 nuclear supplier countries that seeks to contribute to the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons through the implementation of two sets of Guidelines for nuclear exports and nuclear-related exports (see www.nuclearsuppliersgroup.org). Currently the participating Governments of the NSG are Argentina, Australia,Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia,Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Republic of Korea, Latvia,Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania,Russian Federation, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and the United States. The European Commission and the Chair of the Zangger Committee participate as permanent observers.
Click for Original Statement of Nuclear Suppliers Group 


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