Pakistan takes over UN Conference on Disarmament presidency today.

— Pakistan has achieved yet another huge diplomatic milestone as it is all ready to assume the Presidency of the United Nations Conference on Disarmament today (August 17).

Tahir Andrabi, Additional Foreign Secretary for Arms Control and International Security and Spokesperson of the Foreign Office has been appointed as the new president of the Conference on Disarmament. Andrabi has already reached Geneva and will chair the crucial meetings of the Conference in the coming days.

Pakistan’s main job during its presidency, according to the diplomatic sources, would be to direct the proceedings of the Conference in an orderly, balanced and consensual manner. The President Tahir Andrabi will also compile the annual report of the Conference which will be put before the member nations for adoption. The report will detail the Conference’s activity over the whole year, including discussions, negotiations and progress on its agenda.

Pakistan would assist talks on a draft resolution to be presented to the UN General Assembly, which is likely to approve it in November, the annual report said. Pakistan will also host consultations and negotiations on the agenda of the Conference for 2027 during its presidency.

As president, Pakistan will hold this week a significant debate on the Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space (PAROS). The United States and European nations have quite different views on PAROS than China and Russia. Diplomatic sources suggest that one of the primary difficulties of Pakistan’s presidency will be to bridge these gaps.

The Conference will also address nuclear disarmament, prevention of nuclear war, negative security assurances, the Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty (FMCT) and developing technologies. Other discussion topics will be the military usage of Artificial Intelligence (AI), international and regional peace and strategic stability.

Pakistan’s president arrives at a moment of heightened global geopolitical tensions. The Russia-Ukraine war, US-China strategic rivalry, upgrading of nuclear weapons, weaponization of outer space and increasing role of AI in military matters have rendered the Conference on Disarmament more relevant than ever. In this scenario, the presidency of Pakistan is a chance to play a substantial diplomatic role in the area of global security.

At the Conference, 41 countries recently advocated for an obligation to provide at least 24 hours notice of long-range ballistic missile and space launch activities.

The UN Conference on Disarmament is the only standing multilateral negotiating venue in the world on disarmament agreements and weapons control. It has 65 member nations.