Chandigarh, October 20
Former Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting and Chandigarh MP Manish Tewari has said that India remains committed to ‘nuclear disarmament’ that is universal, non-discriminatory and verifiable. While delivering a statement on nuclear weapons and related issues at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) First Committee in New York, Tewari reiterated that India remains committed to ‘nuclear disarmament’ that is universal, non-discriminatory and verifiable. He added that this goal can be achieved by a step-by-step process underwritten by universal commitment to an agreed non-discriminatory multilateral framework.
“We outlined this approach in our 2006 working paper to the First Committee and again in 2007 at the Conference on Disarmament as document CD/1816. The relevance of this approach endures,” said Tewari, while adding, “As a responsible nuclear weapon state, India maintains a policy of credible minimum deterrence with a posture of no first use and non-use against non-nuclear weapon states. We are prepared to convert these undertakings into multilateral legal arrangements.”
Emphasising that India’s capabilities are shaped by our unique security environment and are not directed against any specific actor, Tewari said, “India also remains committed to its voluntary unilateral moratorium on nuclear testing. India believes that legally binding assurances to non-nuclear weapon states against the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons should alleviate their sense of insecurity and thereby strengthen the non-proliferation regime. This would contribute to reducing the nuclear danger.”
While stating that India acknowledges that the use of artificial intelligence in nuclear command and control raises real questions, Tewari said that we espouse the principle that the decision to use nuclear weapons should be taken by humans. “India traditionally tables two resolutions under this cluster: the resolution on reducing nuclear danger tabled by India since 1998 draws attention to the hair-trigger alert status of nuclear weapons and calls for de-alerting and de-targeting to reduce the risk of unintentional or accidental use.
Continuing his statement, Tewari said that India has also introduced since 1992 a resolution on a convention on the prohibition of the use of nuclear weapons, which calls upon the Conference on Disarmament to begin negotiations on an international convention prohibiting the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons. “Such a universal legally binding agreement would build the political will needed for the total elimination of nuclear weapons,” he emphasised, adding, “We look forward to the continuing support and co-sponsorship of member states for both resolutions.”
While stating that the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons does not create obligations for India, Tewari concluded his statement, saying, “Our commitment to global nuclear disarmament nonetheless remains unchanged, as does our commitment to strengthening non-proliferation. We also remain committed to promoting international efforts to prevent terrorists and non-state actors from gaining access to nuclear weapons, materials and technology.”
