‘Nuke-free ME resolution flawed’

PMO: Singling out Israel, ignoring Iran sets regional security back.

By JPOST.COM STAFF, AP
Netanyahu pointing tough good 311 (photo credit: AP)
Netanyahu pointing tough good 311
(photo credit: AP)
The Prime Minister’s office on Saturday called the resolution adopted by the NPT Review Conference on a nuclear free Middle East in 2012 “deeply flawed and hypocritical,” saying it “ignores the realities of the Middle East and the real threats facing the region and the entire world.”
The resolution singles out Israel, calling on it to accede to the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and to allow inspection of its nuclear sites.
By focusing on the Middle East’s only true democracy and by blatantly ignoring the very real threat posed by Iran, which is racing to develop nuclear weapons and openly threatens to wipe Israel off the map, the resolution sets regional security back, Israel responded.
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“The real problem with Weapons of Mass Destruction in the Middle East does not relate to Israel but to those countries that have signed the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and brazenly violated it – Iraq under Sadam, Libya, Syria and Iran,” the response stressed.
“As a non-signatory state of the NPT, Israel is not obligated by the decisions of this Conference, which has no authority over Israel. Given the distorted nature of this resolution, Israel will not be able to take part in its implementation,” the statement concluded.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu will discuss this issue with US President Barack Obama on his upcoming visit to Washington this Tuesday, especially in light of clarifications the US issued immediately following the resolution’s adoption, referring to Obama's criticism of Israel's mention by name in the resolution.
The
189 member nations of the NPT adopted a detailed plan of steps toward nuclear disarmament on Friday, including a sharply debated proposal to move toward banning the doomsday arms from the Middle East.
In the end, the singling out of Israel remained in the text, and US Undersecretary of State Ellen Tauscher said that would "seriously jeopardize" US efforts to persuade the Israelis to attend 2012 talks.