Mr. Chairman,

At the outset, on behalf of the Chinese delegation, I would like to congratulate you on your assumption of the chairmanship of this session of the United Nations Disarmament Commission (UNDC). I believe that your rich diplomatic experience and wisdom will guide the meeting to positive achievements. I would like to assure you Chinese delegation's full cooperation with you and other delegations. I would also like to take this opportunity to express my sincere appreciation to your predecessor, Ambassador Christopher Grima of Malta, for his outstanding work.

Mr. Chairman,

The world today is undergoing profound and complex changes. We are faced with growing comprehensive international security challenges, traditional and non-traditional factors intertwined. Against such backdrop, countries are increasingly interdependent and bonded by rising common interests. China has all along advocated that the international community should adopt a new security concept featuring mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality and coordination, and work together to address diverse security challenges, settle disputes through diplomatic and peaceful means, so as to create a peaceful and stable international and regional security environment conducive to promoting the multilateral arms control and non-proliferation process.

Mr. Chairman,

As a Nuclear-Weapon State and Permanent Member of the Security Council of the United Nations, China has been earnestly pursing an open, transparent and responsible nuclear policy, making its own contributions to promote the international nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation.

—At the Nuclear Security Summit held in The Hague a few days ago, H.E.Xi Jinping, President of the People’s Republic of China, stated for the first time ‘China’s Approach to Nuclear Security’, in the core of which is ‘placing equal emphasis on development and security, placing equal emphasis on rights and obligations, placing equal emphasis on independent and collaborative efforts, placing equal emphasis on treating symptoms and addressing causes’. President Xi also made solemn commitment in his statement that China will stay firmly committed to strengthening its own nuclear security capability, building the international nuclear security system, supporting international cooperation on nuclear security, and upholding regional and global peace and stability, which fully demostrated China’s undertakings as a responsible country when dealing with significant international security issues, and its important role in improving global nuclear security standard and achiving enduring nuclear security.

—China stands for the complete prohibition and thorough destruction of nuclear weapons, and actively promote the establishment of a nuclear-weapon-free world. China always maintains its own nuclear forces at the minimum level necessary for national security needs. China has exercised utmost restraint in the development of nuclear weapons, has never deployed nuclear weapons abroad and has not and will not participate nuclear arms race in any form.

— China firmly pursues a nuclear strategy of self-defence, and has adhered to the policy of no-first-use of nuclear weapons at any time or under any circumstances, and made the unequivocal commitment that it will unconditionally not use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear-weapon states and nuclear-weapon-free zones. China always respects and supports the efforts made by the relevant countries and regions establishing nuclear-weapon-free zones, and has signed and ratified all the nuclear-weapon-free zone treaties’ additional protocols open to ratification.

—China supports the principles and goals of The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, and sticks to its commitment on nuclear test moratorium. China actively supports and involves in the work of the al Preparatory Commission of The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization, and has made steady progress in the preparatory work for its national implementation.

—China is of the hope that the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva (CD) could reach consensus on the Programme of Work at an early date so as to start its substantive work as soon as possible, including conclusion of a non-discriminatory, multilateral and internationally and effectively verifiable FMCT. China has also sent its expert to participate in the on-going FMCT Group of Governmental Experts meeting in Geneva.

—China supports the objectives and purposes of Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and has been actively participating in its review process. In the recent years, China together with other Nuclear Weapon States, have held a series of conferences on implementation of the achievements of the NPT review process. The fifth round of P5 conference on implementation of NPT will be held on 14th and 15th of April in Beijing, and P5 will exchange views thoroughly on the three pillars of NPT—nuclear disarmament, nuclear non-proliferation and peaceful uses of nuclear energy. The P5 Working Group on Glossary and Definitions for Key Nuclear Terms chaired by China has already held two expert meetings in Beijing. China will continue its positive efforts in chairing the Working Group, and endeavor to submit the outcome to the NPT Review Conference in 2015.

—China is of the view that the international nuclear disarmament process should follow the principles of maintaining global strategic stability and undiminished security for all. Countries with the largest nuclear arsenals bear special and primary responsibilities for nuclear disarmament, and should continue to make drastic and substantive reductions in their nuclear arsenals in a verifiable and irreversible manner. The development of missile defense system which undermines global strategic balance and stability should be suspended. To attain the ultimate goal of complete and thorough nuclear disarmament, the international community also should develop, at an appropriate time, a viable, long-term plan composed of phased actions, including the conclusion of a convention on the complete prohibition of nuclear weapons.

—China firmly opposes any form of proliferation of nuclear weapons, and promotes peaceful solutions to regional nuclear issues through dialogue and negotiations, with the view of upholding the international nuclear non-proliferation regime and maintaining international and regional peace and security.

—China stays firmly committed to the peaceful solutions to the nuclear issue of the Korean Peninsula through dialogue and consultation, committed to achieving denuclearization of the Peninsula and safeguarding peace and stability of the Peninsula and Northeast Asia. China will continue making efforts to promote all parties to resolve their concerns through dialogue in a balanced way, ease the current situation, and will commit to promoting the resumption of the Six-Party Talks.

—China always devotes to promoting peaceful talks on the Iranian nuclear issue, and has been actively participating in the diplomatic efforts aiming to the resolution of the issue through the path of dialogue and negotiations. Under the joint efforts made by P5+1 and Iran, there has been substantial achievement on the negotiation of the Iranian nuclear issue, which was the first-step agreement between P5+1 and Iran. China also made 1.5 million RMB volutary contribution to IAEA for its safeguarding work in Iran implementing the above-mentioned agreement. Now, another round of P5+1 talks with Iran is underway, and China has already proposed “Five Principles” for a comprehensive settlement of the Iranian nuclear issue. It is China’s hope that all the relevant parties promote the substantive negotiation to succeed and seek a comprehensive, long-term and appropriate solution to the Iranian nuclear issue in a step-by-step manner.

Mr. Chairman,

China has always supported to establish practical and feasible confidence-building measures in the field of conventional arms control, and has made continuous efforts on promoting related international and regional disarmament process and exploration of confidence-building measures.

—China has devoted to transparency and confidence-building in the field of conventional arms control and has been an active participant in the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms and the United Nations Military Expenditures. China supports necessary adjustments to the Register in line with the development of international and regional security situation while taking into account the concerns of all parties. One of the most pressing tasks is to improve the coverage of the Register, i.e., to increase the number of participating countries.

—China attaches great importance to the fight against illicit trade of small arms and light weapons (SALW), earnestly implements the United Nations Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects (PoA). China has adopted a series of measures on legislation, law enforcement, capacity building, international exchanges and cooperation, yielding remarkable results and is actively preparing to submit new national implementation report of PoA. China participated in the UN Security Council High-Level Meeting on SALW held last September in a constructive manner and made four proposals to combat the illicit trade of SALW.

—China supports the international community to take necessary measures to regulate the trade in international conventional arms and to combat the illicit transfer and trafficking of conventional arms. China participated constructively in the ‘Arms Trade Treaty’(ATT) negotiation process. China has no difficulty on the Treaty’s text produced by the Final ATT Conference, but doesn’t agree with the way ATT was adopted by voting in the General Assembly. That is the reason why China abstained in the GA voting. China is currently studying the issue of signing of the ATT. China attaches importance to the humanitarian issues caused by the illicit trade of conventional arms, and is ready to strengthen cooperation with all parties with a view to building a regulated and reasonable arms trade order, and will continue to communicate with all parties regarding the follow-up work.

Mr. Chairman,

The current multilateral disarmament machinery, including the UNGA First Committee, the UNDC and the CD, were established on the First Special Session of the General Assembly on Disarmament (SSOD-I) and has made tremendous contribution to safeguarding world peace and promoting arms control process over the past decades. As the unique deliberative body of the machinery, the UNDC has played an important role in setting priority agenda for multilateral disarmament negotiations. China hopes that member states view the role and status of the UNDC from a rational and practical perspective, conduct work in a pragmatic manner so as to make positive progress in this session.

Mr. Chairman,

China will unswervingly take the road of peaceful development and continue to work with other countries for the lofty cause of human peace and development. We are ready to join hands with other countries to promote multilateral arms control process, thus making new contributions to the cause of safeguarding world peace and stability.

I thank you, Mr. Chairman.