The statement was made by Muhammad Najib, head of the delegation of the House of Representatives (DPR)`s Commission I when visiting the Secretariat of Preparatory Commission Comprehensive Nuclear-Test Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) in Vienna, Third Secretary of the Indonesian embassy in Vienna Luna Amanda Sidqi said in a press statement, Thursday.
Muhammad Najib, a PAN politician, was accompanied by Yahya Sacawiria (PD), Muchamad Ruslan (Golkar), Theodorus Yacob (PDI-P), and Syahfan Badri (PKS) in the meeting with CTBTO Executive Secretary Ambassador Tibor Toth.
Countries which possess nuclear weapon must stop all kinds of nuclear weapon testing and must reduce the numbers of nuclear weapons until finally the world is free of nuclear weapons, he said.
DPR is considering when to ratify CTBT and would also encourage other countries to ratify the treaty, accoring to the MP.
CTBTO Executive Secretary Tibor Toth welcomed the statement and recalled a statement by Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa in New York in May last year, stating Indonesia`s decision to start the ratification process.
The decision was received worldwide responses, especially from countries which own nuclear weapons, and obviously strengthened Indonesia`s leadership in the nuclear non-prolifiration and disarmament issues.
Tibor Toth called on Indonesia to help invite other countries grouped in the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) to also ratify the CTBT.
The CTBTO Executive Secretary later hosted a lunch reception which was also attended by the ambassadors of the Philippines, Sweden and the US, for the Indonesian delegation.
During the visit, the Indonesian parliamentarian delegation also had a dialog with three Indonesian nuclear experts who are working with CTBTO to get input on CTBT.
The legislators also had a chance to visit the headquarters of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) which is also located in the Vienna International Center.
On the occasion, they had a discussion with seven Indonesian atomic experts working with IAEA, on the latest technology of necrear for peaceful purposes.
After the visits to CTBTO and IAEA headquarters, they sit as panelists in a seminar on "Measuring Progress Towards A World Free of Nuclear Weapons: The Indonesian Perspective".
They are later scheduled to have a meeting with their Austrian counterparts in Vienna, and Slovenian members of parliament in Ljubljana, to discuss bilateral and international issues.
The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) bans all nuclear explosions in all environments, for military or civilian purposes. It was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 10 September 1996 but it has not entered into force.(*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2011
