Closing Remarks

ENTWURF
UN Security Council Resolution 1540 Civil Society Forum – Opportunities for
Engagement
(Vienna International Centre, 8 – 10 January 2013)
Closing Remarks by
Ambassador Alexander Kmentt
Director, Disarmament and Arms Control Division
Austrian Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs
Distinguished conference participants,
Ladies and gentlemen,
We have heard the briefings by the moderators and the ideas for follow-up contained
in the summing up of the meeting by Ms Sokova and Ms Perkins. From my point of
view, this 1540 Civil Society Forum was a unique and very important event. It fulfilled
the hopes and expectations of the Steering Committee of the conference. I would
even say that it was another land-mark event for three reasons:
1. First, the Steering Committee was an outstanding example of a collaborative effort
– a true “public-private partnership” involving one government, one international
organisation, and civil society represented, in alphabetical order, by the Institute for
Security Studies, the NPS Global Foundation, the Polish Institute of International
Affairs, the Stanley Foundation, Stimson Centre, the University Kebansaan Malaysia,
the VCDNP or Vienna Centre for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation, and by
VERTIC.
I would like to formally thank all involved for their contribution, both in human
resources as well as in financial terms. I would like to specifically mention Mr. Nikita
Smidovich from UNODA, who had been instrumental over the past years in sounding
out the mood of the 1540 Committee in New York after Austria’s departure from the
Security Council and for preparing the ground for this event. His colleague in the new
UNODA office in Vienna, Mr Franz Kolar, has proven the value of having such an
office in the Vienna International Centre, collocated with the IAEA and the UNODC
here. Ms Elena Sokova from the VCDNP, who was instrumental in bringing together
a very dynamic and dedicated group of civil society organizations to serve on the
Steering Committee. The work of the Steering Committee turned Vienna into a global
“1540 civil society hub”. I would like to thank the Stanley Foundation for the additional
financial sponsorship apart from the substantive input provided by Keith Porter and
Jennifer Smyser. I am sincerely grateful for the contributions of all other members of
the Steering Committee: Mr Noel Stott from the ISS, Ms Irma Arguello from the NPS
Foundation, Mr Lukasz Kulesa from PISM, Mr Brian Finlay from Stimson, Mr Noramly
Muslim from the National University in Malaysia, and Mr Scott Spence, who has
joined us from VERTIC.

2. Second, the participants represented a formidable array of expertise from all
thematic areas relevant to UNSC resolution 1540. They also covered all geographical
regions. And, above all, they reflected the strong interest in and need for an
exchange of views and information in this first ever Civil Society Forum after the
Stanley Foundation had broken the ice with their 2009 civil society side event
connected to the comprehensive review effort for the 1540 Committee.
3. Third, the Civil Society Forum allowed the Steering Committee to extract from the
discussions a number of recommendations and conclusions that have a good
potential for being followed-up. This is also due to the very active presence of the
1540 Committee expert, Ms Dana Perkins. I am personally impressed by the
productivity of this conference.
From this Forum we get the clear message that the civil society organisations that
participated in Vienna are willing to contribute to the implementation of the
obligations of Member States contained UN Security Council resolution 1540. With
Ms Dana Perkins from the 1540 Group of Experts, we already had an official
recognition of the importance of civil society. Nevertheless, I would be happy to
ensure on behalf of the Steering Committee that the results of this 1540 Civil Society
Forum are formally conveyed in an appropriate manner to the 1540 Committee so
that it can take this information into account in the planning of future activities.
Finally, ladies and gentlemen, I would like to echo the message of the UN Secretary-
General addressed to this Civil Society Forum, in particular when he stated:
“I have no doubt that the positive impact of civil society will move the world closer to
meeting the objectives of resolution 1540 and a world without weapons of mass
destruction.”
Implementing resolution 1540 is indeed one important aspect of our endeavours to
eliminate the threat of WMD. It is part of our attempt to take a holistic approach to
disarmament and non-proliferation and to change the mind-set that has so far
prevented the break-through necessary for achieving this goal. Thus Austria will
continue assisting UNODA in its work – not only through the European Union
contributions, and not only by supporting the Vienna office, but by supporting
UNODA activities in more general terms. Austria will also continue supporting the role
of civil society, which now also has a strong disarmament and non-proliferation
presence in Vienna through the VCDNP.
On this note, I would like to congratulate you all for the work achieved and I hope for
a good continuation of our joint activities in the New Year and in years to come.