REMARKS BY ALLAN POOLE
SENIOR COORDINATOR, GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP PROGRAMCHEMICAL WEAPONS DEMILITARIZATION CONFERENCE LUNEBURG, GERMANY 17 May 2006 Let me begin by saying how pleased I am to have this opportunity to speak at such an important event, in such a beautiful town as Luneburg. It is always a pleasure for me to return to Germany, having been posted here twice during my career, for a total of six years. Luneburg was actually part of the territory I covered for two years. And it is fitting that an event focused on chemical weapons demilitarization should take place here in Germany. Germany, after all, has been and remains a leader in assisting Russian chemical weapons destruction efforts under the Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction. Canada, of course, has a very special connection to the Global Partnership. It was under Canada's G8 presidency that the Global Partnership took shape, and it was at the Kananaskis summit that the Global Partnership was born. I have had the pleasure and privilege of being part of the Global Partnership's evolution since that time. During these past four years, the Global Partnership has, to be sure, experienced its fair share of growing pains - but so too has it witnessed impressive accomplishments in all program areas - the dismantlement of nuclear-powered submarines, redirection of former weapons scientists, nuclear and radiological security, biological non-proliferation and chemical weapons destruction. Canada, with a $1 billion commitment to the GP, has chosen to be active in all these areas. These priorities were agreed to by leaders at Kananaskis and Canada feels it is important to live up to their expectations. We have already committed more than C$100 million for the dismantlement of 12 decommissioned nuclear submarines in Russia's North; to date we have fully dismantled four submarines, and ten reactors have been defueled. We also have the implementing agreement in place to cover the third year of our activities and the dismantlement of 9 submarines. To address the threat posed by former soviet weapons scientists, Canada is contributing up to C$18 million annually - through the International Science and Technology Centre (ISTC) in Moscow and the Science Technology Centre Ukraine (STCU) in Kiev - to redirect these scientists by providing them with opportunities to apply their knowledge to peaceful scientific pursuits. In this regard, I am pleased that this year's conference includes two sessions on employment of former CW scientists. Indicative of the importance that Canada ascribes to this area, two members of our Global Partnership program will be taking part in this afternoon's session. On the nuclear and radiological security front, Canada is focusing on projects to improve the security of nuclear materials and highly-radioactive sources through the provision of physical protection upgrades at nuclear sites. It has taken longer to develop projects in this area but Canada is very pleased with progress over the past 6 months and now has a meaningful role in this process. And in the biological non-proliferation area, Canada has developed a comprehensive biological safety and biological security strategy to help prevent terrorists and countries of proliferation concern from acquiring or developing biological weapons and related materials, equipment and technology. Which brings us to chemical weapons destruction, the theme of this conference and one of Canada's top priorities under the Global Partnership. As I have outlined above, all areas of the Global Partnership are priorities for Canada. But two unique features lend particular urgency to chemical weapons destruction - the fact that these are actual ready-to-use "weapons" and that the Chemical Weapons Convention establishes very specific time lines for their destruction. Canada has to date committed more than C$100 million (approx USD88M) to the construction of the chemical weapons destruction facility (CWDF) at Shchuch'ye. Canadian funds are being used for a number of high priority projects at Shchuch'ye, including the construction of an 18 km railway from the storage to destruction facilities, procurement of critical equipment for one of the site's two main destruction buildings, the construction of a local public address system and inter-site communication lines. These projects are of course all part of a much larger package. In this vein, I want to stress the partnership nature of the work at Shchuch'ye. Individual projects being funded by Canada will make an important contribution to the project's ultimate goal - the destruction of Shchuch'ye's massive arsenal of deadly nerve agents, but they will not complete the work. Without the CWDF industrial zone being built by the United States, our railway leads to nowhere. Without the Russian-built shell of the second main destruction, or the gas pipeline we co-funded with Italy, the destruction equipment would sit idle and lifeless. And without the electrical infrastructure put in place by the UK and other partners, the public address system and inter-site communications lines would be powerless and useless. In the CWD field, more than any other area under the Global Partnership, true partnerships and cooperation have become the norm and are essential. Canada has also cooperated with other countries in all priority areas but we have also dismantled submarines on a solo basis. Similarly, some of Canada's funding for vital upgrades at nuclear and biological facilities, or support for important scientific projects through our redirection program is done independently. But we do not feel we can go it alone in the CWD field. The scale of the problem is simply too large, the infrastructure costs too great for a country to tackle construction of a CW destruction facility on its own. This was a major reason why Canada declined a Russian request in the early days of the Global Partnership to take the lead in building the destruction facility at Leonidovka. Instead, we opted to commit ourselves at Shchuch'ye, where we had already funded several relatively small projects, and where other partners - Russia, the United States and the United Kingdom in particular - were engaged. The role of the United States at Shchuch'ye is critical and merits special mention. Washington's $1 billion commitment at Shchuch'ye speaks volumes about the US's commitment to the Global Partnership and to assisting Russia with CWD. Yet in some circles, the United States contribution at Shchuch'ye has often been understated and some individuals have complained that the US is delivering assistance too slowly this type of conclusion is not consistent with our experience. Canada works very closely with the US at Shchuch'ye and we have nothing but admiration and appreciation for the work they have done to get the Shchuch'ye facility up and running. Canada is also indebted to the United Kingdom for the progress we have been able to achieve at Shchuch'ye. Our two countries have developed a very special relationship at Shchuch'ye. In 2003, before Canada had concluded its bilateral GP agreement with Russia, we made the decision - based on the respect that we had for the UK team and our own desire to make an early and significant contribution to the CWD effort - to channel $33 million through the UK program for construction of the railroad. So well did this arrangement work, Canada and the UK decided to continue this relationship even after Canada and Russia signed our bilateral agreement at the Sea Island summit in 2004. Canada, of course, is not the only country to channel money through the United Kingdom, which had the foresight to conclude a bilateral agreement with Russia that allowed for third party contributions. The UK has since been very active and successful in encouraging other donors - big and small - to channel money for CWD projects at Shchuch'ye through their agreement. We have also worked closely with the UK to encourage more countries - new and repeat donors - to contribute additional funds for projects at Shchuch'ye. After all, the job at Shchuch'ye is not yet done. More funds still are needed to complete critical infrastructure projects. Canada therefore continues to encourage any countries considering a contribution to Russia's CWD effort to give due consideration to making a contribution for Shchuch'ye through the UK program. As my country has $98 million currently flowing through the UK program, I speak from experience when I say that you can be assured that your funds will be well looked after and that a quality project will result. While Canada is but one of many countries flowing funds through the UK, our relationship with the UK is unique. We are implementing our projects with the United Kingdom in a true partnership, as a team if you will. My CWD staff work daily with their UK MoD counterparts to advance our projects, and are involved in all aspects of project development, delivery and oversight. It is an arrangement, we are confident in saying, that has worked very much to the benefit not just of Canada and the UK, but Russia as well. We are consequently extremely grateful to the United Kingdom for the pivotal role it is playing at Shchuch'ye. Notwithstanding the contributions made by Canada, UK, US and other donors at Shchuch'ye, the most important player in the CWD area is Russia -- after all, the chemical weapons convention makes clear that it is solely a Russian responsibility to destroy the entirety of its 40,000 tonnes CW stockpile. Russia has made impressive and commendable strides since Kananaskis. It has - with considerable assistance from Germany and other donors - brought the CWDFs at Gorny and Kambarka on-line. It has fulfilled the first of four CWC-mandated destruction targets. It has devoted new resources to its national CW destruction plan and committed to build destruction facilities at each of the seven CW storage sites on its territory. In doing so, it has steadily increased its annual funding for CWD- to 18 billion roubles this year -- and has plans for another major increase next year. Russia has demonstrated its commitment to destroying its CW stocks and we are pleased to work with them in this effort. Concerning future efforts, Canada expects to continue to support Russia's CWD efforts after completion of the Shchuch'ye facility. One possible option is the CWDF site at Kizner. In March a joint Canada-UK delegation visited Kizner to evaluate potential cooperation opportunities there. It is too early to tell exactly what our next step will be but our current experience with Russia, the UK, the US and other partners makes us confident that we will find a way to continue the important collaboration in the CWD area. Canada also plans to continue to support the important contribution that Green Cross International makes in providing independent and objective information about Russia's chemical weapons destruction program to the populations near chemical weapons storage and destruction facilities. It is easy to forget sometimes, that these deadly CW arsenals and their destruction facilities are located in someone's back yard - -and that those people have a need and right to know the implications of the work being done, with international support, in their areas. This is why Canada is funding the operation of a Green Cross outreach and information office at Izhevsk and why Canada and the UK recently published a joint Russian language pamphlet to provide information on Canadian and UK projects being implemented at Shchuch'ye . The pamphlet is being distributed by Green Cross Russia through its network of public outreach offices. Canada greatly values the role played by Green Cross in promoting the safe and effective destruction of chemical weapons in Russia. In closing, I want to add that Canada is pleased by the level of cooperation that we receive from our Russian partners in all areas of the Global Partnership. Like any other partnership undertaking work that is high risk and challenging, it takes time for quality relationships to develop but this has happened. It allows us to continue to work in the Global Partnership with a high level of confidence. Thank you for your attention and thank you to the organizers for putting on this important event. |
