Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir is calling for the establishment of a nuclear weapons-free zone in the Middle East, as well as the establishment of a chemical weapons-free zone in the area.
In remarks prepared for delivery Tuesday evening at the General Assembly’s third special session on disarmament, the Israeli leader also called on the Arab nations to scale down the arms race in the area.
“A nuclear weapons-free zone, the end of the arms race in the Middle East and the universal banning of chemical weapons are urgently needed, not only for the sake of the people in our region, but for the sake of all mankind,” Shamir declared.
The prime minister noted that Israel has proposed a nuclear weapons-free zone in the past, but the Arabs have rejected the idea and refused to negotiate it with Israel.
“We do not understand this blanket refusal,” Shamir said. “It reflects a consistent attitude of rejection of any kind of dealing with Israel, even on matters of vital concern to the security and future of the peoples of our region.”
Shamir also said that in 1986, Israel proposed to negotiate a reduction of forces in the Middle East. “We know that the burden of the arms race is devastating to the economies of all the countries in the region. And it is getting worse,” he said.
Shamir said that it is urgent, even before peace comes, to stop the arms race in the Middle East. He added that Israel is greatly troubled by the introduction of chemical weapons into the region.
“The presence and use of chemical weapons constitute a real threat to the peace of our region and to the peace of the entire world. All enlightened peoples should be alarmed by the arbitrary use of these weapons,” he said.
The Israeli premier was sharply critical of the use of poison gas by Iraq in its war with Iran. “Iraq has used this vicious means of indiscriminate killing in its war with Iran. It is a gross and blatant violation of the Geneva protocol to which Iraq is signatory,” he said.
He also pointed out that Syria has built facilities for the production of poison gas, and he charged that Syria’s leaders have threatened to use it against Israel.
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