Federica Mogherini on the CTBT

In her video statement to introduce the EU Non-Proliferation & Disarmament Conference 2015 from 11 to 12 October 2015 in Brussels, Belgium, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini referred to the Iran nuclear agreement as a success for multilateral diplomacy that should be used for advancing the entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT). Federica Mogherini is also member of the CTBT’s Group of Eminent Persons, initiated by Executive Secretary Lassina Zerbo in 2013.

In her address, Mogherini said (excerpts): “I have the honour to be part of the group of Eminent Persons who are promoting the Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty.  It is not just that. I see nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament as a life-long commitment, one of the greatest tasks of this generation.
The [Iran] deal opens new opportunities, including on non-proliferation. One of them is to relaunch the process towards the entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. I know it will not be easy, but we must make sure that we do not lose the momentum.
The role we played in the negotiations with Iran and our role in overseeing the implementation now of the deal puts us Europeans in a privileged position to work on this. Any progress on the test-ban treaty could also revive hopes for a Middle East free of weapons of mass destruction. All countries in the region need to accept arrangements towards a meaningful conference on this subject…”