FM urges holding Mideast nuclear non-proliferation conf. on due time

Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed Amr called for holding the December conference on rendering the Middle East free of nuclear weapons, rejecting all pretexts for delay. During a meeting Saturday evening with visiting President of the United Nations General Assembly Vuk Jeremic, Amr reviewed Egypt's efforts to hold the conference on its due date, considering the postponement as a breach of the resolutions issued by the 2010 Review Conference for the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), Foreign Ministry Spokesman Amr Roshdi said Sunday. The 2012 conference is meant to lay the groundwork for the possible creation of a WMD-free Middle East as agreed to at the 2010 NPT review conference. The two sides tackled efforts to help the UN General Assembly restore its role in protecting international peace and security, a role which the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is trying to sap, the spokesman said. The talks also addressed regional conditions, especially in Syria and the Palestinian territories.