Israel's aggressive policy fuels concerns over its nuclear programme

The Arab Group of States here on Friday expressed regret that influential members of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which for long defended the universality of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), tend to wink at Israel's nuclear capabilities. This approach is an evident of the policy of double standards, Oman Ambassador to Austria Bader bin Mohammad Al-Hana'i said in his address to the IAEA Board of Governors Meeting on behalf of the Group. The (Arab) concerns about Israel's nuclear threat are consolidated by the aggressive policy used systematically by the Jewish country towards its Arab countries, he affirmed. The Arab countries affirmed once and again the need for the IAEA to address the threat of nuclear proliferation in the Middle East away from politicization since this matter jeopardizes the security and stability of region and the world at large, he reminded. Israel is the only country in the region which remains outside the NPT; its negative practices remained a source of concern for the UN nuclear watchdog and other UN agencies, he said. The Omani diplomat cited a list of resolutions on Middle East denuclearization, including the resolution of the IAEA General Conference in 2009, which urge Israel to join the NPT and open its nuclear facilities to IAEA inspections. He expressed regret for the indefinite postponement of the international conference for declaring the Middle East a nuclear-weapon-free and a WMD-free zone. The conference was originally scheduled to take place in 2012 pursuant to a resolution by the 2010 NPT Review Conference He expressed regret for the indefinite postponement of the international conference for declaring the Middle East a nuclear-weapon-free and a WMD-free zone. The conference was originally scheduled to take place in 2012 pursuant to a resolution by the 2010 NPT Review Conference. He rejected as unacceptable the justifications of the IAEA influential members for the postponement of the conference, saying the unrest in the region can rather justify speeding up the convening of the conference. Since the first NPT Review Conference in 1995, the Arab countries have cooperated effectively and transparently with the NPT state parties for setting the stage for the planned conference and the ultimate goal of the denuclearization of the region but to no avail, he added. The Arab Group, while reaffirming commitment to the results of the NPT review conferences of 1995 and 2010, regrets the failure of the UN nuclear watchdog to make headway in the second meeting of the preparatory committee for the conference, held between April 22 and May 3, 2013, Al-Hanani went on. He reaffirmed the Arab Group's support to principles for a nuclear-weapon-free and WMD-free Middle East, announced by Egypt during the 68th UN General Assembly Session. Failure to convene the planned conference at an early date casts doubts on the credibility of the NPT and could negatively impact on the implementation of the treaty in other part of the world, he cautioned. Israel, backed by the United States and other western allies, hampered the Arab lobbying in the IAEA for applying the NPT safeguards on the Israeli nuclear facilities over the last two decades and blocked the efforts to convene the last year's conference. The IAEA Board of Governors Meeting is scheduled to come to a close later tonight