20 April 2000

Text: Albright to Lead U.S. Delegation at NPT Review Conference Opening

Secretary of State Madeleine Albright will lead the U.S. delegation at the opening session of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference in New York April 24.

In a statement issued April 20, State Department spokesman James Rubin called the NPT "an indispensable tool in preventing the spread of nuclear weapons" and said the United States "remains fully committed" to the Treaty and its objectives.

Following is the text of Rubin's statement:

U.S. Department Of State
Office of the Spokesman
April 20, 2000
Statement By James P. Rubin, Spokesman

Secretary Albright to Lead U.S. Delegation at Opening of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference

Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright will lead the United States delegation at the opening session of the Sixth Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) on Monday, April 24, in New York. On Monday afternoon Secretary Albright will deliver the U.S. Statement to the Conference in Plenary Session.

The NPT provides that the Parties may meet every five years to review the operation of this Treaty with a view to assuring that its purposes and provisions are being realized. At the 1995 Review and Extension Conference the Parties decided to extend the NPT indefinitely and without condition and to hold the next Review Conference in 2000. This Conference is the first to meet since that historic decision.

The NPT is nearly universal, and is an indispensable tool in preventing the spread of nuclear weapons. The Treaty provides an essential foundation for the reduction of existing nuclear arsenals and for promoting progress toward nuclear disarmament. It also promotes the peaceful uses of the atom in a wide range of applications, including medicine, industry, and agriculture.

The United States remains fully committed to the NPT and to its objectives. We look forward to a comprehensive and balanced review of the Treaty, and to a reaffirmation by all Parties of the critical importance of the NPT to regional and global security.

In conjunction with the Secretary's address, the U.S. Delegation will release a report outlining the U.S. commitment to promoting nuclear arms control and disarmament.

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