News

USIS Washington File

09 March 2000

Text: U.S.-Japan Press Statement on Non-proliferation Commission

(Nuclear non-proliferation, test ban treaties first priority) (840)

The United States and Japan have established a new bilateral
commission to enhance international measures to prevent proliferation
of nuclear arms and other weapons of mass destruction, Senior Advisor
for Arms Control and International Security John Holum and Japanese
Foreign Ministry Director General for Arms Control and Scientific
Affairs Norio Hattori said in a joint press statement March 8.

The press statement said the new bilateral commission, the "U.S.-Japan
Commission on Arms Control, Disarmament, Nonproliferation and
Verification," will meet every six months to review and implement
joint goals, with the immediate priority being the strengthening of
the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) regime and the bringing
about of the early entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test
Ban Treaty (CTBT).

According to the statement, the commission will also work to bring
about a satisfactory conclusion to the United Nations Nuclear
Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference, scheduled to convene next
month in New York.

The statement said the commission has established a Technology
Cooperation Working Group, comprised of Japanese and American experts
and focused on exploring possible uses of technology to verify arms
control and non-proliferation treaties and agreements. The working
group has already developed a concrete plan for proceeding with three
projects to improve the effectiveness of the CTBT's International
Monitoring System's seismic network, the statement added.

Following is the text of the press statement:

(begin text)

JOINT PRESS STATEMENT
HATTORI-HOLUM
JOINT PRESS CONFERENCE

March 8, 2000

Today is an historic occasion. The governments of the United States
and Japan have decided to intensify and expand their diplomatic and
technical cooperation to achieve goals they both value highly:

-- Strengthening the international regime to halt the spread of
nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction;

-- Ending the testing of nuclear weapons for all time by putting into
force the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty;

-- Working together to prevent an arms race that would inevitably lead
to instability and greater tension in the international community;

-- Negotiating protocols to strengthen the Biological Weapons
Convention to protect all people from the scourge of biological
weapons; and

-- Combining efforts in the Conference on Disarmament to initiate
negotiations on a critical treaty to halt the production of fissile
material for nuclear weapons.

To these ends, we are announcing here today the formation of a
U.S.-Japan Commission on Arms Control, Disarmament, Nonproliferation
and Verification. The Commission will meet every six months to review,
discuss and implement our joint goals for strengthening the
international arms control, disarmament and nonproliferation regime.
To further mutual understanding, the Commission will also encourage
non-governmental experts in both countries to undertake enhanced
collaboration efforts in pursuit of the Commission's important goals.

As a first step towards closer technical cooperation, the Commission
has established a Technology Cooperation Working Group. The use of
technology to verify arms control and nonproliferation treaties and
agreements is critical. It cuts across national and international
security concerns. The activities of the new U.S.-Japan Technology
Cooperation Working Group will leverage the joint expertise and
funding of the U.S. and Japan to speed progress on important
verification issues.

Last week, in Tokyo, this experts group met to discuss initial joint
projects. Focusing on measures that enhance the effectiveness of the
Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) verification regime, the
Technology Cooperation Working Group developed a concrete plan for
proceeding with three projects to improve the effectiveness of the
CTBT's International Monitoring System's seismic network. These
projects will specifically address:

-- Methods of seismic location calibration using chemical explosions

-- Developing earthquake ground truth data 

-- Promoting seismic transparency 

The experts in the Technology Cooperation Working Group expect to
complete detailed work plans by mid-April so that funding sources and
work schedules can be developed for joint project implementation.

The terms of reference of the new Commission read as follows:

Japan and the United States recognize the importance of maintaining
and strengthening the international arms control, disarmament and
non-proliferation regime. Continuing bilateral talks provide a firm
basis for cooperation in these areas.

In this connection, the two countries have established "the U.S.-Japan
Commission on Arms Control, Disarmament, Nonproliferation and
Verification" to hold periodic and intensive discussions on the wide
range of diplomatic and technical activities in this field. The
Commission will augment and provide a context for existing bilateral
discussions. Strengthening the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT)
regime and bringing about the early entry into force of the
Comprehensive Nuclear Test-ban Treaty are the immediate priority items
on the Commission's agenda. In the near term, the Commission will
focus on efforts to ensure that the 2000 NPT Review Conference
reinforces the continued important role of the NPT to global security.

As part of the Commission's activities, Japanese and American experts
will explore possible measures to enhance the effectiveness of the
verification system as provided in the CTBT.

(end text)

(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: usinfo.state.gov)