At nuclear treaty review, Arabs see opening and US ready to deal on nuke-free Mideast

Arabs see opening for nuke-free Mideast

UNITED NATIONS — The world’s five recognized nuclear-weapons powers on Wednesday reaffirmed the goal of a Middle East free of nuclear weapons, a long-dormant Arab idea that’s come back to life at this month’s nonproliferation treaty conference.

After 15 years of inaction, the United States appears ready to deal on the proposal, intended to pressure Israel to give up its secretive atomic arsenal, although how far the Obama administration will go isn’t yet clear.

Washington’s chief arms control official said the continuing lack of a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace remains an obstacle.

“The question is, how do you do that in the absence of a peace plan?” Undersecretary of State Ellen Tauscher said of the “nuke-free” zone idea.

But in answer to a reporter’s question, she said the U.S. has been working “for months” with Egypt on the issue. Another Western diplomatic source, speaking on condition of anonymity about other nations’ contacts, said the Americans also have been in discussion with the Israelis, who do not officially confirm the existence of the Mideast’s only nuclear warheads.

On the floor of the General Assembly Hall, in the third day of the monthlong conference to review the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, the Arabs sounded determined to push for a breakthrough.

“This conference represents a pivotal turning point in the history of the treaty, and an opportunity that may be the last and that must be seized,” said Egyptian U.N. Ambassador Maged A. Abdelaziz.

Later Wednesday, Russian arms negotiator Anatoly I. Antonov read out a joint statement on nonproliferation and disarmament goals on behalf of the five powers recognized as nuclear-weapons states under the NPT — Russia, the United States, Britain, France and China.

“We are committed to full implementation of the 1995 resolution on the Middle East,” he said.

The resolution adopted 15 years ago, at one of these twice-a-decade conferences, called for a Mideast zone free of weapons of mass destruction — nuclear, chemical and biological. Such a zone would join five other nuclear-free regions globally — Africa, Southeast Asia, Central Asia, the South Pacific and Latin America — covering 116 countries that have outlawed the presence of atomic arms in their areas.

The United States, Israel’s prime international backer, has long endorsed the idea of a Mideast zone, but never pushed for action. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton caught the U.N. hall’s attention on Monday, however, by saying Washington would support “practical measures for moving toward that objective.”

The U.S. and Russia have developed a joint approach to the issue, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei A. Ryabkov told reporters here. He didn’t elaborate, beyond saying they have focused on a compromise, “common denominator” plan in place of a proposal by Egypt to convene negotiations on a Mideast zone in 2011.

Diplomats said another option being discussed is appointment of an official “special coordinator” to study and consult with governments about ways forward.

The idea of a Mideast zone has risen higher on the global agenda because of fears that Iran’s ambitious nuclear program, which the West alleges is aimed at weapons-making, will prompt other Mideast nations to develop their own programs. And an expected future shift toward nuclear power worldwide will put sensitive technology in more hands.

One Arab spokesman hinted at this potential for nuclear weapons proliferating to more Mideast states.

If the nuke-free zone idea falters, governments are studying “alternatives that would be available to the Arab states,” Lebanese diplomat Nawaf Salam, speaking for the Arab Group, told the conference.

Arab speakers pointed out that a weapons-free zone would allay Western concerns about Iran’s program.

No one expects rapid movement toward such a Mideast treaty. Israel has long maintained that a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace must first be reached before it would consider such a region-wide regime.

Still, any movement here would be seen as a concession by Washington and its allies, perhaps enabling them to win support on other elements they favor for a 2010 conference final document — such as tougher measures for nations that withdraw from the treaty under suspicious circumstances.

Israel’s unacknowledged arsenal is believed to include perhaps 80 nuclear warheads. With nuclear-armed India and Pakistan, and with North Korea, which has a weapons program, Israel is one of four nations not party to the NPT.

In Vienna, The Associated Press learned Wednesday that Yukiya Amano, chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog, is soliciting views from the agency’s 151 member states on how to persuade Israel to give up its weapons and join the nonproliferation treaty. Members narrowly adopted a resolution last year criticizing Israel for remaining outside the NPT.

Associated Press Writer George Jahn in Vienna contributed to this report.