Iran slams delayed nuclear disarmament

Iran has slammed nuclear-armed states for failing to take serious action to disarm decades after the ratification of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

“It is a source of grave concern that after almost 45 years of entry into force of the NPT, no single serious step has been taken by nuclear-weapon states towards fulfilling their obligations and unequivocal undertakings,” Iran’s Foreign Ministry official Hamid Baeidinejad said Wednesday.

Baeidinejad, who is director general for political and international security affairs at Iran’s Foreign Ministry, was addressing the third session of the Preparatory Committee for the 2015 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons in New York.

He said nuclear-armed countries have ignored the NPT and have further upgraded their nuclear arsenals and improved “the role of nuclear weapons in their military and security doctrines.”

“Such activities and policies would not only undermine the objectives of the NPT, but would also put integrity and credibility of the treaty into jeopardy.”

The Iranian official said nuclear-armed countries are required to “reverse” their nuclear weapon reinforcement and instead “demonstrate their strong and genuine political will in support of negotiations on nuclear disarmament by adoption of practical nuclear disarmament measures, including through commencement of dismantling their nuclear arsenals.”
Baeidinejad also said the Israeli regime has hindered previous efforts for a nuclear-free Middle East by refusing to participate in a 2012 conference on disarmament “in total defense of NPT unanimous decision.”

“We firmly believe that an agreed plan of action and timetable for the universality of the Treaty in the Middle East should be one of the main priorities of the 2015 NPT review conference,” he said.
Israel, widely believed to possess between 200 to 400 nuclear warheads in its arsenals, refuses to either allow inspections of its nuclear facilities or join the NPT.