Informal Plenary Meeting of the CD On Procedural Issues and CD’s Rules of Procedure

 بسم الله الرحمن الرحیم

Statment

By

Mr. Nabi Azadi

Representative Of the Mission of the 

Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations Office in Geneva

Before Informal Plenary Meeting of the CD 

Geneva, 17 March 2022

On Procedural Issues and CD’s Rules of Procedure

Thank you Madam President,

For Iran, upholding the role, nature and mandate of the CD has always been a top priority. Implementing its mandate as the sole multilateral disarmament negotiating forum and upholding its role, requires fully compliance with the provisions of the CD’s Rules of Procedure. We believe this should be the responsibility of all CD members, particularly, those members that assume the CD presidency. 

Madam President, 

I would like to put on record my delegation’s concern on the way of conducting the session on March 3, 2022.  On that day, the CD heard some delegations concerns about the conduct of the CD’s work and it was clear that there was no consensus on how to proceed with that Plenary Meeting. 

The CD Rules of Procedure is clear and our work in this august body should be guided accordingly. While the CD was discussing the procedural issues, some delegations including my delegation, requested you Madam President, that you apply the rule 18 of the CD’s Rules of Procedure to see if there was consensus or not to conduct our work.

Rule 18 clearly states that, “The Conference shall conduct its work and adopt its decisions by consensus.” We have to be mindful of the two important facts here. First using the verb ‘shall’ and second the ‘chapeau’ of this Rule, which is “Conduct of work and adoption of decisions”.  Accordingly, it is crystal clear and without any ambiguity that not only the decisions but also the work of the CD should be conducted by consensus. 

Madam President, 

The CD’s conduct of work should be based on its clear Rules of Procedure, otherwise the vague and obscure interpretation of the rules and deviation from the well stablished practice of the Conference on Disarmament, will set a bad precedent and undermine the cause, the role and the mandate of the CD. Compliance with the CD’s Rule of Procedure is a mean for effective functioning of this body and we all should always be mindful of that. 

Madam President, 

On the issue of the meeting summaries, I would like to join other delegations that raised their concerns in this regard. Since my delegation have noticed that my delegation’s position was not duly reflected in some cases and in fact, the Summary Meeting on 3 March 2022 did not contain the account of delegations’ positions on the procedural issues. 

Finally, we are looking forward to the Cuban Presidency and as the next president of the CD and eager to work with them closely and constructively.

I  thank you Madam President,