Vietnam supports nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation and the role of the UNDC with its mandate as the sole specialised, deliberative body within the UN multilateral disarmament machinery, a Vietnamese minister counsellor has said.

Pham Vinh Quang, who is also deputy head of the Vietnamese mission to the United Nations (UN), made the statement at the substantive session of the UN Disarmament Commission (UNDC) in New York on March 30.

Although the world has exerted efforts in nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation, challenges are enormous and there still exists a nuclear stockpile capable of destroying the entire world many times, he said.

“Viet Nam is of the view that multilateralism, with central role of the UN, remains essential to any effort to find sustainable solutions to the challenges to peace and security,” the Vietnamese diplomat stressed.

He went on to say Vietnam attaches importance to enhancing the effectiveness of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), that is the cornerstone of the nuclear disarmament, nuclear non-proliferation and peaceful uses of nuclear energy.

Therefore, Vietnamese State President Nguyen Minh Triet made a proposal at the Security Council Summit on nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear disarmament last September to convene an international conference on the use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, Quang said.

“We believe that the 2010 NPT Review Conference will offer an opportunity for member states to review the progress in implementing the Treaty’s provisions and renew their commitments to the principles and purposes of the NPT as well as to find practical measures to strengthen the Treaty in all its three pillars,” he said.

Vietnam remains committed to fulfill all obligations and responsibilities under the NPT to which it is a party, he said, adding that Vietnam has concluded with IAEA the Additional Protocol to Nuclear Safeguards Agreement and supported the establishment of nuclear-weapon-free zones (NWFZs) while working hard with other ASEAN countries to ensure the Southeast Asia region free from nuclear weapons.

The nation also supports all initiatives to genuine disarmament, including those by the Non-Aligned Movement, the Secretary-General in his five-point proposal, the Security Council Summit on nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear disarmament last September as well as the coming Nuclear Security Summit in early April, Quang added.

He called upon all UN member states to work in a cooperative, problem – solving spirit in order to get a breakthrough and achieve agreement on recommendations based on the agenda of the UNDC’s session./.