Statement by the delegation of Ukraine at the UNGA First Committee Thematic Debate on Regional Disarmament and Security
Mr. Chair,
As an advocate of maintaining peace and security with the lowest possible level of armaments, including conventional ones, Ukraine recognizes the important role of conventional arms control, including at the regional and subregional levels, and, accordingly, welcomes all respective measures in this field. Ukraine’s consistent commitment to strengthening effectiveness of confidence building measures (CBMs) also remains unchanged.
Taking this into account, Ukraine supports and sponsors two draft resolutions — “Conventional Arms Control at the Regional and Subregional Levels” and “Confidence Building Measures in the Regional and Subregional Context” tabled by Pakistan.
Mr. Chair,
Ukraine is a responsible long-term participant of pan-European confidence-building mechanisms related to the conventional arms control such as the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE Treaty), the Open Skies Treaty and the OSCE Vienna Document on Confidence and Security Building Measures. Despite the tense situation in some regions of the country and the increase of burden on Ukraine’s Armed Forces caused by the Russian invasion, Ukraine continues to comply with its obligations assumed under the above-mentioned international instruments in the field of conventional arms control.
Ukraine reiterates great importance it attaches to bilateral CBMs with neighboring countries in border areas developed according to the Vienna Document. To date, we entered into relevant bilateral agreements with Poland, Belarus, Hungary, Slovakia and Romania. Conducting inspections on a parity basis pursuant to these agreements confirmed their practical value for deepening trust, friendly relations and military-political cooperation between the countries concerned.
Noteworthy features of these bilateral CBMs are the following: the observation of military activities starting from the tactical level; prohibition of conducting military exercises on a battalion level and above at a distance of 10–20 kilometers from the border; application of CBMs not only to the activities of armed forces, but also other security, defence and law enforcement agencies; the possibility of extending inspections for an additional period of time and their expansion to battalion-level units.
Regrettably, Ukraine’s former numerous proposals to enter into a similar agreement with Russia were rejected by the Russian side. It is also regrettably that the Russian Federation has put into an ongoing state of impasse sub-regional military cooperation and confidence-building arrangements between the Black Sea littoral states, in particular the BLACKSEAFOR and the Confidence and Security Building Measures in the Naval Field in the Black Sea where Ukraine took part.
Moreover, after suspending its participation in the CFE Treaty in 2007, Russia avoided information exchange and verification control, especially on the situation in the Southern Military District of Russia. Destabilizing accumulations of personnel and military equipment in this area enabled its military invasion to Georgia in 2008 and aggression against Ukraine launched in 2014 and continuing right now. As a result of this hostile activity, conventional arms control and CBMs regimes do not currently apply on the territories of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, as well as of certain areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine.
Mr. Chair,
Notwithstanding the deteriorated security situation caused by the current Kremlin leadership’s uncivilized behavior, Ukraine believes that the experience gained in the OSCE area with the development of the CBMs deserves proper attention and the Vienna Document that has generated a great deal of experience in the field of confidence building can serve as a viable example for similar arrangements in other regions of the world.
Thank you.