Eoghan Murphy (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)

When Oppenheimer saw the results of his first test of the atomic bomb he had helped to create, he said, "I have become death, the destroyer of worlds." He was quoting from a Hindu text, the Bhagavad Gita. It cuts directly to much of what we are speaking about and why we are discussing this important issue.

Every year on 6 August a small group of people gather by a cherry blossom tree in Merrion Square. The tree was planted in 1980 to commemorate the victims of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings. It was planted by the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament in Ireland. I recognise the good works of Mr. David Hutchinson Edgar and CND in Ireland and all they have done to date to keep this issue to the fore. I was honoured to speak at this event a few years ago when I was a councillor and have attended it since as a Deputy. It is not a very large group. Generally, the same people attend year after year and they are usually a little older than me. The Japanese ambassador attends as an invited guest. The ambassadors from the nuclear weapons states are invited, although none has attended when I have. Given the number who attend, their age profile and how quietly this event takes place, one would think we were commemorating an event that took place a long time ago. No one would think that this was still a problem which confronted us and I should not be interested in this issue because the potential threat of the use of nuclear weapons and their existence should no longer be a problem in that people older, wiser and more experienced than me should have solved it by now such that it should no longer be on the agenda and considered as important an issue. No one is really taking an active interest, apart from the diehards who are very good and committed. It is dangerous, however, that this issue is not to the fore in our debates and discussions, as it ought be, because, as the threat recedes from our memories and the collective subconscious, it becomes more real.

My interest is accidental. I began by studying conflict resolution and ended up studying weapons proliferation, a subject which fascinated me. I was fascinated because I saw how nuclear weapons had shaped international history and continued to shape international relations. I was also fascinated by the important role Ireland had always played in this sphere. I knew nothing about this until I studied it. I retained an interest in the subject and, after leaving university, worked in the area for four years, before coming a politician. At the conference on disarmament in Geneva I was fortunate enough to have time to work with the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization in Vienna. I was always very interested in how visionary, bold and ambitious Ireland was. During the formation and implementation of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, NPT, the cornerstone of our non-proliferation and disarmament efforts and regime, Ireland was the world leader and a visionary. The treaty began with Ireland, that is, with Mr. Frank Aiken in the 1950s. He had a very real and prescient concern that one day the weapons would disseminate to terrorists. This trend continued in the 1990s when, as visionaries and leaders, we formed the New Agenda Coalition. In the conference to review the NPT in 2000 we agreed on 13 practical steps towards nuclear weapons disarmament. We cannot say we have been and continue to be world leaders and visionaries on very many major international issues.

I thank the Tánaiste and the Whips for agreeing to this debate and allowing time to discuss the matter. I had sought a discussion on it through the Whip who recognised immediately its importance. That is why we are discussing it today. It is important because some of the key tensions in the world concern the threat of nuclear weapons proliferation or the continued existence of nuclear weapons and the failure to achieve the nuclear disarmament objectives that we all sought to achieve when we opened the NPT for signature in the 1960s. We must bear in mind the Cold War tensions that are resurfacing in Europe over proposed missile shields and new missiles, tensions in the Middle East and the growing isolation of Iran, the rush to war in Iraq and its aftermath, and the North Korean regime's breaking of almost all of the remaining taboos on nuclear weapons, including that on testing, as it attempts to ape some of its neighbours and perceived rivals. We must note the dangers posed by the possession of nuclear weapons by unstable governments. We are not sure how the coming to power of a new government could lead to increased tensions. We envisage possible arms racing on the subcontinent. That is just the present set of circumstances, which is wholly separate from the considerable damage nuclear weapons and their existence have caused for human life since they were first invented. In this regard, we must bear in mind the people living on the Polynesian islands who were displaced and affected by testing in the 1950s and later; the victims the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings; the victims on the Rainbow Warrior; and the victims dying of hunger in North Korea today because that country's regime has decided to spend so much money in trying to create a weapon it could almost certainly never use.

As many Deputies have outlined, Ireland has had a good reputation historically. It is only right that the Dáil consider these matters in order that our strong record and independent voice can continue. It is only right also that we all be given an opportunity to contribute to this most important of debates in which I welcome all contributions. We must recognise that, as parliamentarians, we have a different role from that of the Government. This is true in all modern democracies, which is why we have the Inter-Parliamentary Union, a union between countries for parliamentarians and elected officials to promote issues separate from those of their governments. The PNND, which was mentioned, promotes this objective.

I was heartened to hear the Tánaiste respond so positively recently to the international joint parliamentary statement on a Middle East free of nuclear weapons and all other weapons of mass destruction. I recognise all the good work our diplomats are doing and have done in this sphere, particularly for the NPT review conference in 2010 and our work in seeking to secure a nuclear weapons free zone in the Middle East. In this regard, our work is incredibly important. Our efforts in the Dáil and those of the Government are very much aligned. We now begin the process of preparing for the NPT review conference in 2015. The first preparatory committee meeting was held recently, at the end of April. So much needs to be done. Members' contributions and the points they regarded as important indicate that a huge range of issues needs to be addressed. However, if we are to expect the non-proliferation pillar of the NPT to remain standing and robust, we must work on the key pillar of disarmament. We still have the capacity to destroy all human life on this planet many times over. If we do not continue in our pursuit of disarmament and achieve greater reductions in nuclear arsenals, that threat will not change. We face the risk of new countries entering the nuclear club and existing members advancing their arsenals rather than reducing them. We must, therefore, bring disarmament centre-stage if we are to have a chance of making progress with countries such as Iran and North Korea and if we are ever to hope those outside the treaty who possess nuclear weapons will sign up to the disarmament principles therein.

Ireland, as part of the New Agenda Coalition, helped to negotiate the 13 practical steps in 2000. The very first of these steps was seeking a commitment to bring into force the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, CTBT. By banning the testing of nuclear weapons, possible new entrants will be kept from becoming nuclear powers and existing members cannot introduce new weapons into their arsenals. A ban on testing means no new nuclear weapons and no new nuclear weapon states. If we are to get rid of these weapons, that is where we must start. We have started on this path and started well. The CTBT has been signed by 183 countries. Its verification system of 337 stations around the globe, ensuring compliance with its provisions, is in place. It has its headquarters in Vienna, where I worked and the executive secretary, Mr. Tibor Tóth, and his team are tirelessly working in pursuit of the treaty's goals. Good people are working hard for the betterment of us all and the Government is working with them. It is important to recognise this. Apart from North Korea, no country has tested or exploded a nuclear device in 14 years. The norm against nuclear weapons testing is established and robust. Regrettably, however, the treaty is not yet in force. Bearing in mind the complicated ratification procedures, eight states must yet ratify the treaty for it to become international law. These are China, Egypt, North Korea, India, Iran, Israel, Pakistan and the United States. Entry into force of the CTBT is the next logical, practical and possible step in the nuclear disarmament race.

Let us be visionaries again. Let us have a singular goal as we work towards the review conference in 2015. In the same way as 1995 is remembered for the indefinite extension of the treaty, as 2000 is for the 13 practical steps, let 2015 be remembered for the achieving of the entry into force of the CTBT. Let Ireland be remembered with it, which might sound ambitious to some. To others, however, it will not be ambitious enough. We can do it; let us, at least, try. All we can do is try, and if we fail, no matter, we can try again - fail again, fail better. It behoves us, given our history in this area and our great responsibility on the world stage in the efforts to achieve nuclear disarmament, to work towards our singular goal.

Tomorrow will see the official opening of Ireland's national data centre in the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, as referred to by the Tánaiste. National data centres around the world form part of the global alarm system that the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization has been building. Opening the national data centre reaffirms our commitment to being part of this very important verification regime, which is very welcome. We are and always have been part of the system. It is now time to start shaping it again.

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