Mr. President,
We thank Deputy Secretary-General Izumi Nakamitsu and Mr. Jonah Leff of Conflict Armament Research for their presentations. We welcome the participation of the representatives of Ukraine, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the European Union in our deliberations.
We are concerned by the reports we have just heard.
Switzerland is consternated by the way in which Russia's military aggression against Ukraine appears to continue to be fueled by transfers of arms and munitions from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
Any arms transaction with the DPRK is a flagrant violation of this Council's sanctions regime. This includes the sale, purchase, import and export of weapons to or from the DPRK. At the heart of the same sanctions regime is the demand that the DPRK abandon its ballistic missile program. And yet, ballistic missiles produced by the DPRK appear to have been used against Ukraine, according to reports by Conflict Armament Group. Thus, one violation of international law supports another - breaches of sanctions against the DPRK support Russia's military aggression against Ukraine.
In this context, Switzerland deeply regrets that the extension of the mandate of the panel of experts on the DPRK failed because of a veto. The veto was issued while the panel was investigating these arms transfers. The Sanctions Committee, the Council and Member states relied on the trustworthy and independent information provided by the group.
The presentations we have just heard demonstrate how important it remains for all of us to continue to follow these issues closely if we are to remain firm in our disarmament and nonproliferation commitments. More than ever, the vigilance and probity of all UN member states is therefore required, and we must renew our efforts to break the supply chains of the DPRK's weapons of mass destruction program.
Finally, we underline the importance of maintaining the non-proliferation architecture through the effective implementation of multilateral agreements and instruments, including those related to arms transfers. The test of a ballistic missile by the DPRK two days before today's meeting reminds us once again that sanctions measures against the DPRK play an important role in this architecture and must be respected by all states.
At the same time, we need to strengthen the foundations of this architecture, notably through global ratification of the Outer Space Treaty, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. As the Secretary-General reminds us in his "New Agenda for Peace", putting a stop to the disintegration of the non-proliferation architecture and getting back on the road to progress is a priority.
Mr. President,
The Council must assume its responsibilities to maintain the disarmament and nonproliferation architecture of which it remains one of the guarantors. This role should go hand in hand with a commitment to dialogue, de-escalation and the search for diplomatic solutions. Switzerland, for its part, will continue its commitment within the Council, the Sanctions Committee and in the region to a Korean peninsula free of nuclear weapons and at peace.
Thank you.