CTBTO head welcomes Federica Mogherini’s appointment as EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy
The Executive Secretary of the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), Lassina Zerbo, issued the following statement on the appointment of Italian Foreign Minister Federica Mogherini as the European Union’s (EU) next High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. The decision was taken at a meeting of EU Heads of State in Brussels, Belgium, on 30 August 2014:
“I warmly congratulate Federica Mogherini on this appointment. I am certain she will tackle the EU’s foreign and security issues with her verve and brilliance that she has shown in the meetings of the Group of Eminent Persons to help promote the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. It is highly significant that the EU’s Heads of State would choose a member of the Group of Eminent Persons for this position. It is a source of pride and satisfaction.”
“I warmly congratulate Federica Mogherini on this appointment. I am certain she will tackle the EU’s foreign and security issues with her verve and brilliance that she has shown in the meetings of the Group of Eminent Persons to help promote the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. It is highly significant that the EU’s Heads of State would choose a member of the Group of Eminent Persons for this position. It is a source of pride and satisfaction.”
Italian Foreign Minister Federica Mogherini at the Stockholm meeting of the Group of Eminent Persons in April 2014
Mogherini is one of 20 members of the Group of Eminent Persons launched in September 2013 on the margins of the UN General Assembly in New York. At the group’s last meeting in April 2014 in Stockholm, Sweden, Mogherini offered to host the group’s next meeting in April 2015 in Italy.
Yes, I am optimistic by nature and on this specific issue, I think it is in the interest of the people of those eight countries. And in the end parliaments and governments normally, rationally, take the decisions in the interest of the people.
For the CTBT to enter into force, it must be signed and ratified by 44 specific States. These States participated in the CTBT’s negotiations in the 1990s and possessed nuclear power or research reactors at the time. The remaining eight States that must still ratify are: China, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), Egypt, India, Iran, Israel, Pakistan and the United States. Overall, 183 States have signed the Treaty of which 162 have also ratified. A worldwide monitoring system is being built to ensure that no nuclear explosion goes undetected.