United Nations

A/68/124 (Part II)
Distr.: General 3 October 2013 Original: English

General Assembly

Sixty-eighth session Agenda items 95 and 102 Establishment of a nuclear-weapon-free zone in the region of the Middle East The risk of nuclear proliferation in the Middle East

The risk of nuclear proliferation in the Middle East
Report of the Secretary-General
1. In its resolution 67/73, entitled “The risk of nuclear proliferation in the Middle East”, the General Assembly: (a) Welcomed the conclusions on the Middle East of the 2010 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons; (b) Reaffirmed the importance of Israel’s accession to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and placement of all its nuclear facilities under comprehensive International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards, in realizing the goal of universal adherence to the Treaty in the Middle East; (c) Called upon that State to accede to the Treaty without further delay, not to develop, produce, test or otherwise acquire nuclear weapons to renounce possession of nuclear weapons, and to place all its unsafeguarded nuclear facilities under full-scope Agency safeguards as an important confidence-building measure among all States of the region and as a step towards enhancing peace and security; (d) Requested the Secretary-General to report to the General Assembly at its sixty-eighth session on the implementation of the resolution. 2. The present report is submitted pursuant to paragraph 4 of the abovementioned resolution. Apart from the material forwarded by the International Atomic Energy Agency (see annex), the Secretary-General has not received any additional information since the submission of his most recent report on the subject (A/67/139 (Part II)) to the General Assembly at its sixty-seventh session.

13-49879 (E) 041013

*1347879*

A/68/124 (Part II)

Annex Application of International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards in the Middle East Resolution GC(57)/RES/15 adopted by the General Conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency at its ninth plenary meeting, on 20 September 2013
The General Conference, 1 (a) Recognizing the importance of the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons — both globally and regionally — in enhancing international peace and security, (b) Mindful of the usefulness of the Agency’s safeguards system as a reliable means of verification of the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, (c) Concerned by the grave consequences, endangering peace and security, of the presence in the Middle East region of nuclear activities not wholly devoted to peaceful purposes, (d) Welcoming the initiatives regarding the establishment of a zone free of all weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear weapons, in the Middle East and earlier initiatives regarding arms control in the region, (e) Recognizing that full realization of these objectives would be promoted by the participation of all States of the region, (f) Commending the efforts of the Agency concerning the application of safeguards in the Middle East and the positive response of most States in concluding a full-scope safeguards agreement, and (g) 1. Recalling its resolution GC(56)/RES/15, Takes note of the Director General’s report in document GC(57)/10;

2. Calls upon all States in the region to accede to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT); 2 3. Calls upon all States in the region to accede to and implement all relevant nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation conventions, to fulfil in good faith international obligations and commitments relating to safeguards, and to cooperate fully with the IAEA within the framework of their respective obligations; Affirms the urgent need for all States in the Middle East to forthwith 4. accept the application of full-scope Agency safeguards to all their nuclear activities as an important confidence-building measure among all States in the region and as a step in enhancing peace and security in the context of the establishment of an NWFZ; Calls upon all parties directly concerned to consider seriously taking the 5. practical and appropriate steps required for the implementation of the proposal to
__________________
1 2

The resolution was adopted with 114 votes in favour, 0 against and 12 abstentions (roll-call vote). Operative paragraph 2 was voted on separately and was approved with 112 votes in favour, 2 against and 11 abstentions (roll-call vote).

2/3

13-49879

A/68/124 (Part II)

establish a mutually and effectively verifiable NWFZ in the region, and invites the countries concerned which have not yet done so to adhere to international non-proliferation regimes, including the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, as a means of complementing participation in a zone free of all weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East and of strengthening peace and security in the region; Further calls upon all States of the region, pending the establishment of 6. the zone, not to pursue actions that would undermine the goal of establishing the zone, including developing, producing, testing or otherwise acquiring nuclear weapons; Further calls upon all States in the region to take measures, including 7. confidence-building and verification measures, aimed at establishing an NWFZ in the Middle East; Urges all States to render assistance in the establishment of the zone and 8. at the same time to refrain from any action that would hinder efforts aiming at its establishment; Mindful of the importance of establishing the Middle East as a nuclear9. weapon-free zone, and in this context, emphasizing the importance of establishing peace therein; 10. Requests the Director General to pursue further consultations with the States of the Middle East to facilitate the early application of full-scope Agency safeguards to all nuclear activities in the region as relevant to the preparation of model agreements, as a necessary step towards the establishment of an NWFZ in the region, referred to in resolution GC(XXXVII)/RES/627; 11. Calls upon all States in the region to extend their fullest cooperation to the Director General in the fulfilment of the tasks entrusted to him in the preceding paragraph; 12. Calls upon all other States, especially those with a special responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security, to render all assistance to the Director General by facilitating the implementation of this resolution; and 13. Requests the Director General to submit to the Board of Governors and the General Conference at its fifty-eighth (2014) regular session a report on the implementation of this resolution and to include in the provisional agenda for that session an item entitled “Application of IAEA safeguards in the Middle East”.

13-49879

3/3