Mr. President,

At the outset, let me congratulate you on assuming the first presidency of the 2025 session of the Conference on Disarmament. I appreciate the great deal of work that you and His Excellency Ambassador Meron did during inter-sessional period. China will fully support you and your team during your presidency, and promote a good start for this year’s session of the Conference on Disarmament.

I would also like to extend my greetings to newly arrived colleagues, and good wishes to colleagues who recently left. Happy new year to you all!

Mr. President,

Since the closure of the last year’s session of the Conference on Disarmament, the international situation continues to be characterized by turmoil and chaos, with geopolitical conflicts prolonging and escalating. The instability and uncertainty in international security is rising significantly, the international arms control system facing more severe challenges, and the trend of polarization and fragmentation intensifying, which is fully reflected in the number of resolutions or decisions adopted by voting in the First Committee of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly and will inevitably affect the work of the CD this year.

As the single multilateral disarmament negotiating forum established by the First Special Session of the General Assembly on Disarmament (SSOD-I), the Conference on Disarmament is irreplaceable. It is imperative that all member States of the Conference uphold the spirit of mutual respect, adhere to the principle of consensus, appropriately address differences on issues such as participation by non-member States through full consultations, and make a decision on the work of the Conference on Disarmament for 2025 as soon as possible in accordance with the rules of procedure, so as to start substantive work in a comprehensive and balanced manner.

During last year’s session of the CD, after repeated consultations, the conference made special arrangements for the establishment of five subsidiary bodies and adopted by consensus the reports of the CD and its subsidiary bodies, which will help this year start substantive work at an early stage on the basis of last year’s work. China supports the President’s efforts to continue full consultations with all parties on the detail of the decision on the work of the CD this year, with a view to reaching a proposal acceptable to all.

China noted the support of member states in adopting the decision on the work of the Conference for 2025 as soon as possible and to establish and resume the work of the subsidiary bodies, on the basis of decisions CD/2390 and CD/2391 adopted by the Conference last year. China is open to such a decision. What matters is that the decision on the work of the Conference, the establishment of subsidiary bodies and the appointment of coordinators should strictly comply with the relevant provisions of the rules of procedure of the CD, and that the subsidiary bodies and their coordinators should carry forward their work in accordance with their mandates. We should also take into account the disarmament agenda of this year in Geneva platform in formulating the timetable for the subsidiary bodies, so as to avoid overburdening member States.

Mr. President,

As far as China is concerned, the priority of the CD should be the negotiation of international legally binding instruments on the Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space (PAROS) and Negative Security Assurances (NSA). From the discussions in the Conference on Disarmament in recent years, including the discussions in the subsidiary bodies of the CD, it can be seen that, although all parties emphasize the key role of the Conference on Disarmament as the single multilateral disarmament negotiating forum, there are still many differences on the priorities of the Conference on Disarmament as well as a number of specific issues. At the same time, the work of the Conference cannot be conducted in vacuum. The overall international security environment, relations among major powers, the change of government and policy review in some countries, and the launch of various disarmament processes apart from the CD will all have a significant impact on the work of the Conference this year. Therefore, while actively promoting the work of the Conference on Disarmament and upholding its authority, we also need to have realistic expectations and a pragmatic mindset with regard to the work of the Conference this year, just as the President put it, one step at a time.

Mr. President,

This year marks the eightieth anniversary of the founding of the United Nations. The historical process of humankind has come to another critical point. History has proven that only by advocating the multipolarization of the world in an equal and orderly manner, adhering to genuine multilateralism and upholding a common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable concept of security, can we effectively maintain international peace and security and promote the international arms control and disarmament process. Under your leadership and that of the other members of the P6, we look forward to making positive progress in the work of the Conference on Disarmament this year.

I thank you, Mr. President.