NPT Conference Kicks Off As Ahmadinejad Pledges Nuclear Proposals

They meet every five years to try to strengthen the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) as Iran had accused some Western powers of acquiring nuclear weapons and using it at the time they are signatory of the treaty. But India, which is not a signatory to the NPT has decided to stay out of the conference.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said while arriving in New York on Monday that Tehran does not need to gain the trust of the West as it is observing global rules, unlike those who have nuclear arsenals, the official IRNA news agency reported. Ahmadinejad said Western powers are not seeking to build trust with the Islamic republic.

"We should not offer ways to obtain their trust as Iran abides by the international law and acts within its framework," Ahmadinejad said as he landed at New York's JFK airport. "Iran is committed to international regulations," he said, adding that Western powers "who have stockpiled nuclear weapons, have used them and are monopolizing them, are not seeking to build trust" with Iran.

The Iranian President also said Iran will make "practical, fair and clear proposals" aimed at world security at the NPT conference. "These proposals will be outlined on Monday in the conference," he said, adding that "disarmament and peaceful use of nuclear energy" were the two main world issues. "We consider disarmament to be an influential issue in world security and we are pursuing it."

The review conference comes 40 years after the NPT came into force. The focus in more than three weeks of discussions will be on the treaty's three main pillars: non-proliferation, disarmament and peaceful use of nuclear energy.

Ahmadinejad on Sunday said the NPT has failed in the last 40 years when it came to issues such as disarmament and non-proliferation as some countries procured the nuclear bomb during this period.

Iran and many nonaligned nations argue that the NPT is discriminatory, dividing the world into an elite of nuclear haves lording over second-class nuclear have-nots. The Iranians, backed by Arab countries, also want to turn the spotlight on Israel's sizable nuclear arsenal.

Iran is a signatory of the NPT and as such has the right to enrich uranium. Washington, its ally Israel -- widely believed to be the Middle East's sole but undeclared nuclear weapons power -- and other world powers accuse Iran of masking a weapons drive under the guise of its purely civilian program. That is something Iran strongly denies, and President Ahmadinejad is attending in person to make his case. Moreover, Iran’s Supreme Leader has renewed his ruling on acquiring nuclear weapons saying “it is against the teachings of Islam and it is forbidden.” Israel is believed to have some 200 atom bombs but neither confirms nor denies this.

Ahmadinejad's trip had triggered controversy even before he left for New York, with Iranian officials saying the United States had rejected visas for several members of his delegation. Ahmadinejad is expected to be among the first to speak at the opening session of the NPT review conference but US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last week warned him not to “disrupt” the gathering. An Iranian diplomat said that "this participation at the highest level is a demonstration of Iran's firm commitment to the NPT and to the success of the review conference."

The US and Russia have drafted an initiative to disarm the Middle East of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction, the British Guardian reported on Sunday. The proposal includes the appointment of a special coordinator to conduct exploratory talks with Israel, Iran and the Arab states, followed by a regional conference. Washington and Moscow have already sent the proposal to the three other UN Security Council permanent members, in hopes of receiving their support.

Meanwhile, UN chief Ban Ki-moon urged nuclear weapons states to reaffirm unequivocally a vow to scrap atomic weapons at the start of a conference to review global efforts to check their spread. "I urge nuclear weapon states to reaffirm the 'unequivocal undertaking' to eliminate nuclear weapons. Failure to do so would be a step backward," he told signatories to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

In his speech, Ban appealed to those states which have not yet acceded to the 1970 landmark treaty to do so "as soon as possible."

"Pending their accession, there is a need for measures to ensure the safety and security of those countries' arsenals and technology," Ban told the conference, which lasts until May 28. "Nuclear materials must not be acquired by non-state actors and terrorists," he said.