John Deasy (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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Question 119: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the Government's position with regard to reform of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6852/06]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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There is no reform process, as such, under way in respect of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, NPT. Review conferences take place every five years, however, and afford an opportunity to review the implementation of the treaty and all its provisions. The next scheduled NPT review conference will take place in 2010 and will be preceded by a series of preparatory meetings beginning in 2007. At the last such conference, in May of last year, there were a number of specific proposals on actions that states parties might take to meet the challenges confronting the treaty. Regrettably, the conference ended without agreement on substantive conclusions and recommendations on how to strengthen the non-proliferation regime.

I have made clear the Government's deep disappointment at this outcome. This was a missed opportunity for the international community to tackle some key threats to global peace and security and to agree an effective collective response. We continue to believe that global challenges are best tackled together, through such a response. We are firmly of the view that the NPT is now more than ever of tremendous importance to the achievement of international peace and security. We believe that the international community does not need a new treaty to address the challenges that confront us. What we need is the full implementation of the existing obligations of the treaty. Action to strengthen the treaty and ensure full respect for all its provisions remains essential and we will spare no effort in pursuit of this objective.