Press release - September 14, 2005
On the eve of the Millennium Summit, Greenpeace today condemned the failure of world leaders to address the escalating global nuclear weapons threat.
"A day out from the largest ever gathering of world leaders and
stillthere is no agreement on a text that tackles the issues of
nuclearproliferation and disarmament," said Greenpeace
InternationalDisarmament spokesperson Nicky Davies, in New York for
the Summit.
"Worse still, while earlier versions of the text paid lip
service tothe threat of nuclear weapons and nuclear technology,
today's textdrops reference to them altogether.
"There were hopes that this Summit would reinvigorate
disarmament butGovernments have passed up an historic opportunity
to do so. Thefailure to strengthen the NPT at this Summit and to
also put in place amoratorium on all nuclear re-processing means
that disputes such asthose in Iran are likely to be just the tip of
the iceberg. The worldis now a far more dangerous place," concluded
Davies.
The summit is also failing to address the severity and urgency
of crucial environmental issues.
"It is incredible that governments can't even reaffirm
previouscommitments on sustainable development," said
GreenpeaceInternational's Political Director Jean-Luc Roux. "There
werehopes that world leaders would adopt and expand on the
climatecommitments made by the G8 in Gleneagles this year.
"Climate change is a clear and present danger to the global
community,yet governments are paralysed and unwilling to look
beyond their ownnarrow short term economic self-interest to take
the kind of actionthat the UN was set up for - to protect the
global commons."
Greenpeace welcomes that governments appear committed to
workingtowards a "more integrated structure" for environmental
activities."This is a small step - but have once again they have
failed to make abold leap forward on a time-bound process to create
a United NationsEnvironment Organization (UNEO)," concluded
Roux.
(New York)
Michael Kessler, Greenpeace International Media Officer +34 660
637 053
Nicky Davies, Greenpeace International Disarmament Spokesperson
+31 646 197 330
(Environment)
Jean-Luc Roux, Greenpeace International Political Director+31
615 007 407
Greenpeace is an independent campaigning organisation that
usesnon-violent creative confrontation to expose global
environmentalproblems to force solutions that are essential to a
green and peacefulfuture.