Position Paper: the French Republic General Assembly First Committee - Disarmament and International Security Global Model

United Nations 2011 - Republic of Korea The issues before the First Committee of the United Nations General Assembly are: Nuclear security and sustainable development, and Armed conflict and sustainable development. 1. Nuclear Security and Sustainable Development The French Republic remains perturbed at the growing insecurity developing throughout civil and The French Republic has consistently reaffirmed its compliance of the terms of the Treaty on the NonProliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), and further advocates its commitments pursuant to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material (CPPNM) and the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), in addition to its long standing obligations as a founding member of the European Union. The French Republic perceives the question of nuclear security as representing a multi-faceted issue requiring the international communitys immediate and ongoing attention. For such a purpose, The French Republic sponsors a four point plan for strengthening the effectiveness of current and future multilateral instruments; universal ratification of the NPT, CTBT, CPPNM and Hague Code of Conduct Against Ballistic Missile Proliferation (HCOC) implementing stringent export controls on fissile materials including a production cut-off treaty, transparent inspections of civil and suspected military nuclear installations conducted by the International Atomic Energy Agency and increased security of nuclear materials. The Sarkozy administration acknowledges the growing number of States declaring their intention to pursue a nuclear proliferation programme, and remains deeply concerned the introduction of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) will exacerbate existing political and civil unrest. In light of recent developments, the question of a nuclear free Middle East must now be re-evaluated to extend beyond traditional concerns to include a wholesome international plan for the prevention of further construction, and ultimately dismantlement of all radioactive and radiological weapons. At the inauguration of Le Terrible in 2008, the French Republic announced it would reduce its nuclear arsenal to less than three hundred warheads; successive administrations resolutely stand by that commitment. The international community must denounce and dismantle any existing proliferation programme, and subsequently recognize the existence of nuclear weapons as a debilitating instrument of war, rather than an effective deterrent for peace. No less, a cornerstone of sustainable development policy remains the promotion and extension of civil nuclear capabilities to States that do not currently hold the technology. However, the French Republic further acknowledges the inherent security drawbacks to the widespread use and availability of fissile materials. To combat these concerns, the French Republic will continue to support all initiatives toward the creation of a fissile material cut-off treaty and the imposition of universally stringent protocols on the export of nuclear and dual-use materials. In light of recent events at the Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear power plant, the French Republic urges States to adopt domestic investigations into the physical security of atomic energy production, and continue to proceed cautiously in the development and application of new and existing nuclear technologies. Therefore, the French Republic advocates the adoption of a four point agenda by the First Committee to the United Nations General Assembly; on Disarmament and International Security. Primarily, the international community is called upon to strengthen existing multilateral instruments through the universal ratification of the NPT, CTBT, CCPNM and HCOC. Secondarily, States are urged to further the scope of international law to include the monitoring and control on the production of fissile materials through an international cut-off treaty. Tertiarily, States must cooperate with regional and international organisations to mitigate the risk of fissile material acquisition by terrorist organisations and non-State actors. Quaternarily, States should submit to international inspection of civil and suspected military nuclear facilities, in addition to conducting domestic reviews on the physical security of civil atomic energy facilities in light of the Fukushima-Daiichi disaster.

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Armed Conflict and Sustainable Development

The French Republic acknowledges the corollary link between international conflict and poor economic conditions as both cause and effect of contemporary ongoing State related instability. Traditional methods of post-colonial diplomacy have focused on the provision of financial aid to developing states for the purpose of food and water security, infrastructure, and even micro-financing. However, these methods are both metaphysically and contextually flawed, with failing and failed states often the recipients of large proportions of ODA despite also nurturing a direct relationship between their instability and heightened rates of corruption. Thus, the French Republic will be actively pursuing its trident policy for sustainable development; a. Responsible development assistance, including a shift away from direct financial assistance to the provision of useable goods and services provision; b. Development of a comprehensive universal arms trade treaty to stifle the illegitimate sale and transiting of small and light arms; and c. To implement a global means of funding development assistance through the universal implementation of an International Financial Facility pursuant to the Landau Report of 2004. In 2009, the Minister for Foreign and European Affairs mobilized an emergency 2b in food aid for Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia, utilizing official international development organizations, such as the Red Cross to circumvent concerns over corruption. The French Republic stands by its commitments to achieving the universal standards set by the Millennium Development Goals. President Nicolas Sarkozy has openly committed the Republics to these ends despite the ongoing ripples of the Global Financial Crisis, and increased instability within global financial markets. Additionally, the French Republic remains highly concerned the continued provision of small and light arms to conflict zones and the global arms trades significant role in exacerbating instability, and causa latet, is evident that the provisions of United Nations General Assembly Resolution 61/89 and its subsequent Secretary-Generals report needs to be fulfilled. It is the French Republics position to conclude an international treaty on the trade of conventional arms in the context of the United Nations. In doing so, the scale and scope of conflicts can be reduced placing an additional impetus on administrations to development sustainable and extensive infrastructure projects designed specifically to eradicate poverty. The French Republic stresses that the main objective of such a treaty will be to compel the States to adopt responsible, transparent and proportionate rules of behaviour in the area of conventional arms transfer. To be effective, the future treaty must be designed to be universal and must, in any event, be adopted by as many States as possible from the outset, in particular by the principal arms importers and exporters; For the purposes of provision, the French Republic maintains its support for the adoption of an international development assistance financing scheme as recommended by the 2004 Landau Report. The adoption of an international foreign exchange transaction tax of 0.0005% shall provide the international community, and the United Nations the capacity to enact the terms of the Millennium Development Goals without straining the already tenuous budgetary constraints evident in developed economies and developing States alike. The French Republic supports the adoption of complementary policies aimed specifically at the availability of agricultural products, accessibility of foodstuffs, quality and nutritional value and crisis prevention. In addition, the French Republic urges States to place additional emphasis on the need for civil order and universal recognition of human rights; to facilitate the development of security, and security for development. Such a notion entails the promotion of democratic governance, and specifically Ensuring womens access to fundamental rights, the eradication of violence against women, and achieving their socio-economic integration. The French Republic stands ready to actively pursue its trident policy for sustainable development in relation to armed conflicts and the onus now falls to international community to finally end decades of tension, decades of uncertainty, and most importantly decades of fear for the civilian populations in conflict zones. Conflicts fuelled by a failure to address international gaps in arms trade prevention and distribution of small and light weapons are no less capable of the indiscriminate destruction and scourge of war the international community is entrusted to ensure never reoccurs.