Page 165 - 100 Reflections that Crafted Geneva International_V-Petrovsky_private special edition

Bringing the Concept to Life

most welcome and long-awaited development and will further strengthen the
international community’s efforts to solidify: the current nuclear non-
proliferation regime. One must differentiate between slow progress and no
progress. Make no mistake, negotiations at the CD to conclude a comprehen-
sive test ban are continuing to make important and noticeable headway. It is
very significant that, for the first time, all five nuclear-weapon States are actively
taking pan in the negotiations. I have every reason to feel confident that the
present discussions will achieve the desired result. However, it is counterpro-
ductive to link progress made in concluding a CTBT with other arms
regulation and disarmament endeavours and vice versa. Successful disarma-
ment negotiations demand constructive parallelism, meaning that success in
one area encourages progress in others. Disarmament cannot be looked at se-
lectively. It must be approached holistically, as a chain is only as strong as its
weakest link. A crucial case in point is the upcoming NPT conference. The
NPT is the keystone of the nuclear non-proliferation regime and the system of
arms regulation. The 173 parties to the treaty should take advantage of the op-
portunity to extend the NPT indefinitely and unconditionally. As the
Secretary-General has stated in his Blue Book entitled, The United Nations
and Nuclear Non-Proliferation, “The NPT is too crucial to be subjected to this
type of diplomatic brinkmanship”.

In keeping with the Secretary-General’s recognition that, under Chapter
VIII of the United Nations Charter, regional orgranizations must assume a
more active role in promoting the goals of the United Nations, I have initiated
closer relations with several intergovernmental organizations that are not
recognized as specialized agencies. UNOG has participated in three trilateral
meetings in the past year or so with the Council of Europe and
their Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. The result has
been increased cooperation between the OSCE and the Council and
several UN bodies and organs such as the Office of the High Commissioner
for Refugees (which is also based here in Geneva), the Office of the High
Commissioner for Human Rights and the ECE. The decision taken at the most
recent meeting in Budapest to include the International Committee of the
Red Cross in future "Quadrilateral Meetings" is a most welcome development.

UNOG also has very close relations with the diplomatic community based
in Geneva. The number of diplomatic missions accredited to UNOG continues
to grow. As of 1 January 1995, 141 Member States had established Permanent
Missions to the United Nations Office at Geneva and the specialized agencies,

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