BEIJING For 50 years, hanging over our heads like a sword of Damocles, nuclear weapons have never ceased threatening humanity's survival. The end of the Cold War has not brought about their disappearance. The nuclear reduction process of the United States and Russia has bogged down in a stalemate after a brief period of progress. Weapons tests were again conducted after the conclusion of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. These developments have clearly demonstrated that today, and for a long time to come, nuclear nonproliferation and nuclear disarmament remain important tasks for the international community.

The aim of disarmament is to increase security. All countries, regardless of their size, strength and wealth, have an equal right to security. If the great majority of developing countries cannot have security, there will never be tranquillity throughout the world. Disarmament should not become a tool for stronger nations to control weaker ones. Still less should it be an instrument for a handful of countries to optimize their armaments in order to seek unilateral superiority.

Historical experience shows that an unrestrained arms buildup hampers economic growth and does not help maintain peace and security. Disarmament should free up resources and create conditions for economic development. Indeed, a disarmament treaty can be judged by whether it facilitates growth, especially in developing countries, and strengthens international cooperation in science and technology. No disarmament measure will garner universal support or have lasting viability if it is taken at the expense of economic or scientific development.

Vigorous efforts should be made to strengthen the disarmament bodies of the United Nations so that multilateral treaties replace bloc agreements. Accomplishing this task will require continuous cooperation by the international community. At this stage, progress must be made in these areas: As the countries with the largest nuclear arsenals, the United States and Russia should implement their nuclear reduction treaties and continue to cut down substantially their nuclear weapons arsenals, paving the way for the other nuclear weapons states to participate in the multilateral disarmament process.

The Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty is both the basis of the international nuclear nonproliferation regime and the prerequisite for progress in disarmament. The treaty must be observed in full and in good faith. Countries that have not yet joined the treaty should do so at the earliest possible date so as to make it truly universal. As soon as possible, nuclear weapons states should undertake, unconditionally and in a legally binding manner, to ensure that they will not be the first to use nuclear weapons and will not employ them against states that do not possess them.

Efforts should be made for early entry into force of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. Recent nuclear tests [in India and Pakistan] have made this task more pressing. One of the first to sign the treaty, the Chinese government will continue to work for it and will soon submit the treaty to the National People's Congress for ratification. Negotiations should be conducted as soon as possible for the conclusion of a universal, verifiable treaty banning new production of fissile materials.

Progress in nuclear disarmament cannot be achieved without global strategic equilibrium and stability. Research for and development, deployment and proliferation of sophisticated anti-missile systems, and revision of, or even withdrawal from, the existing disarmament treaties, would inevitably exert a negative impact on international security and stability, triggering new arms races and obstructing disarmament and nonproliferation efforts. The international community should pay attention to all of this and adopt measures to preempt such dangers.

Disarmament is not the prerogative of the few. All countries have the right to participate on an equal footing.