Alatas joins final phase of NPT debate

Alatas joins final phase of NPT debate

JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas leaves
Jakarta for New York this evening to attend the decisive final
week of the Review Conference on the Nuclear Non-Proliferation
Treaty (NPT) at the United Nations headquarters.

Indonesia, as chairman of the 112-member Non-Aligned Movement
(NAM), recently hosted a NAM ministerial meeting in Bandung, West
Java, which produced a consensus seven-point statement on nuclear
proliferation.

The foreign ministry's Director of Information, Irawan Abidin,
said yesterday that Alatas would be taking the results of the NAM
meeting to the NPT conference.

A month long review of the treaty is currently underway in New
York, with delegates deliberating on whether to permanently
extend the treaty or by fixed periods.

Indonesia, along with other fellow NAM members such as
Nigeria, has stated its objection towards an indefinite extension
of the treaty, arguing that the nuclear weapon-owning countries
have not sufficiently fulfilled their obligation to abolish
nuclear weapons.

The Review Conference will end on May 12, at which time
delegates will decide on the extension of the treaty.

Though NAM is divided on the question of indefinite extension,
the movement's common stance on the elimination of nuclear
weapons and the need for a comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty
may have considerable bearing in New York, especially since NAM
represents about two-thirds of the treaty's signatories.

The United States is leading the charge for the adoption of an
indefinite extension and has also lobbied Jakarta to support its
position.

Though Alatas' main objective is to attend the treaty
Conference, Irawan said there is a possibility that the minister
might visit his American counterpart, Secretary of State Warren
Christopher, in Washington.

Following his stay in Washington, Alatas will fly on Monday to
Vancouver, Canada, to attend an Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN) - Canada ministerial dialog.

ASEAN groups Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines,
Singapore and Thailand.

Alatas is scheduled to return to Indonesia on May 14.(mds)