Public Statement of the 2018 NSG Plenary – Jurmala, Latvia

The twenty-eighth Plenary Meeting of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), chaired by Ambassador Jānis Zlamets of Latvia, was held in Jūrmala, Latvia from 14 to 15 June 2018. 

The NSG brings together 48 Participating Governments[1] with the European Commission and the Chair of the Zangger Committee participating as permanent observers. The Group aims to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons through the implementation on a national basis of export controls for nuclear and nuclear-related material, “dual use” material, equipment, software and technology, without hindering international cooperation on peaceful uses of nuclear energy.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia, H.E. Mr. Edgars Rinkēvičs, welcomed the Participating Governments on behalf of Latvia and noted the importance of a strong rules-based international order in tackling proliferation among other transnational security challenges. The Minister reaffirmed the importance of the NSG for the global nuclear non-proliferation regime.

The NSG took stock of developments since the last meeting in Bern in 2017.

In particular, Participating Governments exchanged information on global proliferation challenges and reiterated their firm support for the full, complete and effective implementation of the Treaty on Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) as the cornerstone of the international non-proliferation regime.

On the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), the Participating Governments noted the developments in the DPRK since the 2017 NSG Plenary in Bern, and reconfirmed their commitment to the United Nations Security Council resolutions 2371(2017), 2375(2017), 2397(2017) and previous relevant UNSC resolutions, which, inter alia, reaffirm that the DPRK shall immediately abandon all nuclear weapons and existing nuclear programs in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner. Participating Governments noted with encouragement the recent Inter-Korean summits and the DPRK-US summit. Within the framework of the NSG’s mandate, the Participating Governments noted that the supply of all controlled items to the DPRK is prohibited according to the above-mentioned resolutions.

On Iran, the Participating Governments took note of the continued implementation by the E3/EU+2 and the Islamic Republic of Iran of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Participating Governments reconfirmed their commitment to the UNSCR 2231(2015). Since the last Plenary, the NSG continued to receive briefings from the JCPOA Procurement Working Group Coordinator, regarding the work of the Procurement Channel. Participating Governments expressed interest in receiving further briefings.

The Group noted that discussions were continuing on the requests for participation that had been submitted.

The Group noted that discussions were continuing on the issue of “Technical, Legal and Political Aspects of the Participation of Non-NPT States in the NSG” initiated at the 2016 Seoul Plenary.

At the Plenary meeting, the NSG also:

  • maintained its focus on technical issues important to the implementation of the Control Lists by exchanging views and agreeing on a number of proposals to clarify and update the NSG Control Lists;
  • discussed and reaffirmed the significance of updating the NSG Guidelines to keep pace with the evolving global security landscape and a fast-paced nuclear and nuclear-related industry;
  • strengthened the NSG’s policies on transparency and confidentiality;
  • discussed and exchanged information and national best practices on licensing and enforcement as well as national experiences in implementing the NSG Guidelines;

Outreach

  • welcomed the number of States that have harmonized their national export control systems with the NSG Guidelines and Control Lists;
  • took note of the report on outreach to non-NSG participants and agreed on the value of these outreach activities;
  • exchanged views on the national practices of awareness-raising and interaction with industry as well as academic and research institutions, related to NSG controlled items;
  • took note of an outreach event with the World Association of Nuclear Operators (WANO) and the World Nuclear Association (WNA) on 10 April 2018 and welcomed the interest of industry in future outreach;
  • decided to revise and update the NSG website, adding new content and sections;
  • continued to consider all aspects of the implementation of the 2008 Statement on Civil Nuclear Cooperation with India and discussed the NSG relationship with India.

The NSG Participating Governments invited all nuclear supplier states to express their responsible approach to nuclear exports by adhering to the NSG Guidelines. The Plenary also called on all states to fully implement all UNSCRs relevant to the work and purposes of the NSG, exercise utmost vigilance and to make every effort to ensure that none of their exports of goods and technologies contribute to nuclear weapons programs.

Jūrmala, 15 June 2018

 

[1] Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Republic of Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russian Federation, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and the United States.

A public statement about the meeting can also be found in the “Documents” tab under “Public Statements”.