Khaddour: “Israel” remaining outside NPT endangers regional and international peace

Syria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other international organizations in Vienna Hussein Khaddour has affirmed the need to implement the Resolution adopted during the 1995 Review and Extension Conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), which provides for making the Middle East free of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction.

Khaddour made the remarks during the meetings of the First session of the Preparatory Committee for the 2026 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) in Vienna.

All Arab countries in the Middle East have become parties to the NPT, but the Israeli entity is still the only party in the region that has not joined the treaty, and all its activities and nuclear capabilities remain outside any international monitoring system, said Khaddour.

He reiterated that the remaining of “Israel” and all its nuclear capabilities outside the framework of the treaty and the comprehensive safeguards agreement of the International Atomic Energy Agency, and its rejection of all initiatives calling for the establishment of a nuclear-weapon-free zone in the Middle East threatens the consolidation of the nuclear non-proliferation system and nuclear disarmament system, besides posing a threat to regional and international peace and security.

Khaddour urged the NPT member states to shoulder their responsibilities in practicing pressure on “Israel” as to join the NPT without any conditions or delay, to put all its nuclear facilities under comprehensive IAEA safeguards and to seriously engage in international processes that aim at making the Middle East free of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction.

He said that it is regrettable not to adopt the final document of the Review Conference of the NPT for 2015 and 2022 without any acceptable justifications is worrisome as it constitutes a blow to international efforts that aimed at making the Middle East free of nuclear weapons, and reveals the double standards practiced by some countries.

Ambassador Khaddour went on to say that the next review conference and its preparatory committee should include the adoption of the Middle East Resolution of 1995 as an integral part of the treaty that requires full implementation.

Hamda Mustafa