No. ~ Date

M76 30 May 1991

SENATOR EVANS WELCOMES U.S.  INITIATIVE  MIDDLE EAST ARMS CONTROL

The Australian Government has warmly welcomed the arms  control initiative for the Middle East which was announced  by President Bush on 29 May.

"This important initiative is a bold and imaginative step  in the very difficult process of achieving peace in the  Middle East and has the strong support of the Australian

Government," the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade,  Senator Evans said today.

"The initiative, which addresses conventional arms  transfers, and nuclear, chemical and biological weapons and  missile proliferation, is creative and timely," he said.

The initiative includes the elimination of surface to  surface missiles in the countries of the region, with a  freeze on their acquisition, production and testing as a  first step.

It encompasses resolution of all major outstanding issues  related to the Chemical Weapons Convention by the end of  1991, the early adoption of relevant Chemical Weapons  Convention provisions by regional states, and the  enhancement of the global Biological Weapons Convention.

On the nuclear side, it proposes a ban on production of  weapons-usable nuclear material in the region and on  imports of material into the region.

The initiative also proposes the establishment of  guidelines for restraint by the US, the UK, the USSR, France and China on the supply of conventional arms,  weapons of mass destruction and missiles to the region.

It also involves the destruction of Iraqi missiles and  weapons of mass destruction as already initiated under UN  supervision, and the continuation of the UN embargo on arms  transfers to Iraq.

COMMONWEALTH  PARLIAMENTARY LIBRARY  M1CAH

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Implementation of the initiative will centre on the  Permanent Five members of the UN Security Council, as the  major suppliers of arms to the Middle East,  and regional  countries.

Senator Evans said that Australia was already pursuing many  of the elements of the initiative in its own arms control  activity.

"We have a particular role to play in the negotiation and  development of global multilateral measures which will have  an impact in the Middle East, such as the chemical weapons  negotiations in Geneva,  the strengthening of commitment to  the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the strengthening of  the operation of the International Atomic Energy Agency  safeguards and the strengthening of the Biological Weapons  Convention."

Contact: Brett Bayly Public Affairs Officer DND  Tel 261.3497

