H.E. Mr. Sudjadnan Parnohadiningrat photo courtesy of PBS.org

In his statement to the General Assembly First Committee on Disarmament and International Security, Indonesian Ambassador H.E. Mr. Sudjadnan Parnohadiningrat voiced his country's staunch support for the priority areas identified by the Middle Powers Initiative through the Article VI Forum (A6F).

» Read Indonesia's statement

Official governmental support for MPI's work in this area is demonstrative of the success of the A6F, which set out to identify issues of consensus on crucial areas of disarmament and non-proliferation, so as to ensure a successful NPT Review Conference in 2010. Perhaps there is no diplomat more acutely aware of the dangers of another failure as Ambassador Sudjadnan, President of the infamous 2005 Review, which failed to make any substantive progress in strengthening the international disarmament and non-proliferation regime. (Read MPI's "Deadly Deadlock: Political Analysis of the 2005 Review Conference of the NPT")

With much of the multilateral machinery stalled, deadlocked or otherwise unable to make substantive progress, MPI's skill in convening governments in a non-combative atmosphere is all the more necessary. Governments' appreciation of our unique role in this area is evident; in addition to our recent partnerships with the Governments of Canada (Ottawa, 2006) and Austria (Vienna, 2007), our upcoming A6F hosted by the Government of Ireland (Dublin, March, 2008), the Governments of Germany, Japan and others are also keenly interested in hosting and co-sponsoring future meetings of the Forum. They recognize that, in order for the 2010 Review Conference to be a success, it is imperative that governments have the opportunity to bridge their differences and work together to fulfill all obligations under the NPT regime.