Abstract

The efforts to create a nuclear weapons ― later weapons of mass destruction ― free zone in the Middle East face many difficulties: the Arab–Israeli conflict, the deterioration of the Israeli–Palestinian peace process, the growing number of actors in the peace process, the nuclear program of Iran, the security policy of Israel etc. The aim of this paper is to give an overview of the international (United Nations [UN], European Union [EU]) efforts from the 1960s to the indefinite post- ponement of the Middle East weapons of mass destruction free zone (MEWMDFZ) conference planned for December 2012.

Highlights

  • The efforts to create a nuclear weapons ― later weapons of mass destruction2 ― free zone in the Middle East face many difficulties: the Arab–Israeli conflict, the deterioration of the Israeli–Palestinian peace process, the growing number of actors in the peace process, the nuclear program of Iran, the security policy of Israel etc

  • One of the cornerstones of the nonproliferation regime of the nuclear weapons is the Nuclear Non–proliferation Treaty (NPT), with which (1968) the international community established a significant norm in the nuclear field

  • Resolution 3263 of the UN General Assembly (1974) calls upon all parties concerned in the establishment of a nuclear–weapon–free zone in the region of the Middle East to refrain, on a reciprocal basis, from producing, testing, obtaining, acquiring or in any other way possessing nuclear weapons and to accede to the Nuclear Non–Proliferation Treaty

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Summary

The beginnings

Efforts to create nuclear–weapons–free zones (NWFZ) are not new, their origin dates back to the 1960s. Resolution 3263 of the UN General Assembly (1974) calls upon all parties concerned in the establishment of a nuclear–weapon–free zone in the region of the Middle East to refrain, on a reciprocal basis, from producing, testing, obtaining, acquiring or in any other way possessing nuclear weapons and to accede to the Nuclear Non–Proliferation Treaty. (UN, 1975) A nuclear–weapon–free zone in the Middle East would have been established by the accession of Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Yemen, Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Syria and Saudi Arabia Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon and Oman supported the second paragraph of the resolution, which states that the parties refrain from producing, testing, obtaining, acquiring or in any other way possessing nuclear weapons. Israel stated that “it would take further steps in order to insure durable peace in the area”, and was inclined to participate in the conferences dealing with the issue. (UN, 1975)

The impact of the war between Iraq and Iran
The Barcelona Process
Conclusion
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