Nuclear-weapon-free zone ‘unlikely’

Press, 22 June 1987, Page 3

Nuclear-weapon-free zone ‘unlikely’

By

TIM DONOGHUE,

NZPA staff correspondent

Hong Kong A nuclear-weapon-free zone in South-East Asia was unlikely to eventuate in the near future, said the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr O’Flynn, yesterday.

He made the comment at the end of three days of talks in Singapore between the Association of South-East Asian Nations (A.S.E.A.N.) and its industrialised partners — the United States, Japan, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the European Community. Mr O’Flynn said that Indonesia continued to push the nuclear-free-zone idea but there was little progress being made on it. He said that the American influence, on one hand, was too strong.

“On the other there is a certain amount of fear about either the Soviets or the Chinese,” Mr O’Flynn said.

A communique last Tuesday at the end of the two-day Foreign Ministers’ meeting said that A.S.E.A.N. would continue studying the concept of a

nuclear weapon-free zone with a view to drafting a treaty as soon as possible. At the final press conference on Saturday, the Indonesian Foreign Minister, Mochtar Kusumaatmadja, said that his country strongly supported nuclear free zones. He said that Indonesia sat astride important sea lanes and faced the constant danger of accidental spillage of nuclear waste.

A.S.E.A.N. is an economic and political grouping linking Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Singapore.

In Manila last week the Secretary of State, Mr Shultz, said that the United States would resist any move to turn SouthEast Asia into a nuclearfree zone.

“It is basically not a good idea. Peace in the world depends on our ability as a major nuclear power to deter aggression,” said Mr Shultz. The proposal for a nuclear-free . South-East Asia has been raised at previous A.S.E.A.N. meetings.

Mr O’Flynn said that there was full agreement among conference partici-

pants over the effort to end Vietnam’s almost nine-year occupation of Kampuchea.

“We want to see Vietnamese forces removed,” said Mr O’Flynn. He said, apart from a little bit of unease in some quarters about the anti-nuclear stand, that there were no matters of contention in sight between A.S.E.A.N. countries and New Zealand.

Mr O’Flynn said he had had a brief, cordial corridor meeting with Mr Shultz. "There was no acrimony whatever.” Mr O’Flynn told the final press conference that the recent enactment of New Zealand’s antinuclear legislation was not damaging to the security of the region or harmful to the over-all security balance.

He said that New Zealand’s focus on the South Pacific did not imply the end of defence cooperation with traditional partners in A.S.E.A.N. Mr O’Flynn said that New Zealand was commited to promoting twoway trade with A.S.E.A.N. nations.