03 June 2016 - The existing ASEAN-led security fora in the region can help create an atmosphere of trust and confidence which could contribute to efforts to address the issue of the increasing number of nuclear weapons, according to Philippine Ambassador to the Russian Federation Carlos D. Sorreta. 

Ambassador Sorreta made this point as a member of the panel on “Rethinking Nuclear Disarmament in the Asia Pacific” at the 2016 Jeju Forum for Peace and Prosperity on May 26.

“The ASEAN Regional Forum and the East Asia Forum can express more concern over the pressing nuclear issues in the region, raise awareness of the problem and help create an atmosphere of trust and confidence which are necessary to any effort to reverse the rise in the number of nuclear weapons in the region and perhaps eventually eliminate them all together,” Ambassador Sorreta told those attending the panel discussion. “The ASEAN Regional Forum, in particular, which counts among its participants all the nuclear weapons states, all the nuclear weapons possessing states and all the nuclear weapons capable states in the region, can help move the regional nuclear disarmament agenda forward,” he added.

Ambassador Sorreta was invited to the Jeju Forum in his personal capacity. He has been involved in both Track One and Track Two nuclear disarmament efforts and is a member of the Asia-Pacific Leaders Network for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament (APLN).

In his discussion, Ambassador Sorreta cited studies that show that the number of nuclear warheads in the region were increasing. “This is particularly worrisome given the existing tensions in the region, the increasing use of different delivery systems and the very real possibility of accidental or unintended use,” he added.

When asked what nuclear weapons states themselves can do to contribute to lowering nuclear tensions in the region, Ambassador Sorreta said “they can do a great service to the cause of eventually eliminating nuclear weapons by engaging ASEAN with a view to signing the protocol to the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapons Free Zone Treaty.”

With Ambassador Sorreta as members of the panel where Professor Ramesh Thakur, Director, Centre for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament (CNND), Crawford School, Australian National University who moderated the discussions; John Tilemann, Director of Research, Asia-Pacific Leadership Network for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament; and, Dr. Lee Hong-koo, former Prime Minister, Republic of Korea.

The Jeju Forum is a regional multilateral dialogue for promoting peace and prosperity in Asia. The Forum serves as a platform for discussing and sharing future visions on sustainable peace and prosperity in Asia. Hosted by the Government of Jeju Special Self-Governing Province with the full support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea, the Forum was launched in 2001 as Jeju Peace Forum. The Forum had been held biennially before 2009 and when it became an annual event in 2011, the Forum was renamed as the Jeju Forum for Peace and Prosperity. Its Secretariat is headquartered in Jeju, South Korea. The Jeju Forum is held in May each year, in Jeju, with more than 60 sessions including plenary sessions and various networking opportunities.

For 2016, the theme of the Jeju Forum is “Asia’s New Order and Cooperative Leadership.” Among the key speakers at the Jeju Forum this year were Ban Ki-moon, United Nations Secretary General; Tomichi Murayama, former Prime Minister of Japan; Mahatir Bin Mohamad, former Prime Minister of Malaysia; Jim Bolger, former Prime Minister of New Zealand; Goh Chok Tong, former Prime Minister of Singapore; Enrico Letta, former Prime Minister of Italy; Joe Kaeser, President and CEO of Siemens AG; and J.B. Straubel, CTO and Co-Founder of Tesla Motors. END.