Mideast situation-Communique of NAM meeting of FM (excerpts) – Letter from Colombia

Letter dated 1 October 1997 from the Permanent Representative

of Colombia to the United Nations addressed to the

Secretary-General

In my capacity as Chairman of the Coordinating Bureau of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries, I have the honour to enclose herewith the Communiqué of the Meeting of Ministers for Foreign Affairs and Heads of Delegation of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries to the fifty-second session of the General Assembly, held in New York on 25 September 1997.

I would greatly appreciate it if this letter and its annex could be circulated as an official document of the General Assembly under agenda items 10, 11, 18, 21, 30, 35, 36, 37, 41, 51, 56, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 64, 66, 67, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 87, 88, 92, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 101, 103, 104, 105, 106, 108, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 117, 120, 142, 146, 150, 151 and 152 and of the Security Council.

(Signed)  Julio LONDOÑO PAREDES  

Ambassador       

Permanent Representative

ANNEX

Communiqué of the Meeting of Ministers for Foreign Affairs and

Heads of Delegation of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries

to the fifty-second session of the General Assembly,

issued on 25 September 1997

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21. The Ministers for Foreign Affairs and Heads of Delegation expressed their satisfaction for the fact that the General Assembly had exercised its role and responsibility more effectively in maintaining international peace and security in accordance with resolution 377 of the General Assembly of 3 November 1950, titled:  "Uniting for Peace", which led to the convening of the Tenth Emergency Special session on "Illegal Israeli actions in occupied East Jerusalem and the rest of the occupied Palestinian territory as called for by the XII Ministerial Conference of the Movement.

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53. The Ministers for Foreign Affairs and Heads of Delegation reiterated their support for the establishment in the Middle East of a zone free of all weapons of mass destruction.  To this end, they reaffirmed the need for the speedy establishment of a nuclear-weapons-free zone in the Middle East in accordance with the relevant General Assembly resolutions adopted in consensus.  They called upon all parties concerned to take urgent and practical steps towards the establishment of such a zone and, pending its establishment, they called on Israel, the only country in the region that has not joined the NPT nor declared its intention to do so, to renounce possession of nuclear weapons, to accede to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) without delay, and to place promptly all its nuclear facilities under full-scope IAEA safeguards.  They expressed great concern over the acquisition of nuclear capability by Israel which poses a serious and continuing threat to the security of neighboring and other States and they condemned Israel for continuing to develop and stockpile nuclear arsenals.  Stability cannot be achieved in a region where massive imbalances in military capabilities are maintained particularly through the possession of nuclear weapons which allow one party to threaten its neighbors and the region.  They further welcomed the initiative by H.E. Mohammed Hosni Mubarak, President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, on the establishment of a zone free from weapons of mass destruction in the in the Middle East.  They stressed that necessary steps should be taken in different international fora for the establishment of this zone.  They also called for the total and complete prohibition of the transfer of all nuclear-related equipment, information, material and facilities, resources or devices and the extension of assistance in the nuclear-related scientific or technological fields to Israel.

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65. The Ministers for Foreign Affairs and Heads of Delegation reaffirmed the positions taken by the Eleventh Summit in Cartagena as well as the Twelfth Ministerial Conference in New Delhi on the Question of Palestine and the Situation in the Middle East.  They expressed their deep concern over the serious deterioration of the Middle East peace process and the increased tension in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including Jerusalem, and in the region as a whole as a result of the policies and actions of the current Israeli government.  They reaffirmed their position with regard to the illegal Israeli settlements and other projects in the occupied territories.  They supported the recommendation contained in resolution ES-10/3 (15 July 1997) to convene a conference of the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention on measures to enforce the Convention in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including Jerusalem, and to ensure its respect.  They agreed that that Israeli participation in the work of the General Assembly must be in conformity with international law and that Palestinian participation should reflect recent important developments on the Palestinian scene.

66. The Ministers for Foreign Affairs and Heads of Delegation reiterated their support for the rights of the Palestinian people, including the right to have their own state, and they reiterated their demand for the withdrawal of Israel from all the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including Jerusalem, and the Syrian Golan to the line of 4 June 1967.  They also reiterated their support for the Middle East peace process started in Madrid, on the basis of Security Council resolutions 242, 338, and 425 and the principle of land for peace.  They called for the implementation of the agreements reached between the Palestinian and Israeli sides.  They also called for the respect of all commitments and pledges made during the peace talks between Syria and Israel and for the resumption of these talks from the point at which they stopped.  While expressing their deep concern over the repeated Israeli aggression against Lebanon, they called for Israel's withdrawal from South Lebanon and the West Bekaa in accordance with Security Council resolution 425, and to fully respect the independence, sovereignty and integrity of Lebanon.

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