Page 197 - 100 Reflections that Crafted Geneva International_V-Petrovsky_private special edition

Bringing the Concept to Life

unprecedented process. In the Cold War, international politics could be
compared to a game of chess. I remember in the Cold War in Moscow during
the crisises, we could foresee further action because there were certain rules.
Today, world politics is no longer playing chess. I would compare today's
international relations to a game of billiards. There are many, many actors and
not only traditional. The world has truly become multipolar.

D.L.: One of your works on international relations dealt with disarma-
ment. You are well qualified to appraise the NPT Review and Extension
Conference that was recently held in New York. In this context, what is your
view on China's nuclear testing, and the possibility that France will resume nu-
clear testing?

V.P.: Recent nuclear testings make it necessary to multiply the efforts in
order to conclude the CTBT next year. The indefinite extension of the non-
proliferation treaty provided political and legal framework for the commitment
of all to nuclear disarmament. The failure to reach agreement rapidly on
nuclear testing would directly undermine the efforts recently undertaken by the
international community. Of course, there remains a number of open
questions, which is also very natural. But the tremendously important part of
the negotiation is that for the first time in history all five nuclear powers are
working together and are working within a multilateral context. In the past, test
ban agreement was worked out by two super-Powers which was then presented
to other countries for signature. In this case, the Treaty is being prepared
within the Conference on Disarmament which is a very important sign. It
shows that a problem of this scope can be solved in a multilateral context. The
successful conclusion of the convention on prohibition of chemical weapons
has shown that multilateralism it is the most effective and reliable answer to the
new challenges in the field of disarmament and arms regulation.

D.L.: But a nuclear test ban does not necessarily imply disarmament,
which is the final goal.

V.P.: Of course, nuclear test ban is not disarmament as such, but it
facilitates the achievement of this goal. If we look at the history of disarmament
efforts, we can see that we are now on the road to nuclear disarmament. There
are those who might argue about how advanced the process is, but progress is
there. Slow progress does not mean that there is no progress at all.

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