Page 63 - MDOS2_Final

T e Road Taken and

a Baton to Pass

Syed Mohamad Hasrin Aidid

Preamble
T e tension in the room was rising. Predominantly out of anticipation
by almost everyone present, eager for a successful closure to our collective
toiling and ef orts of the preceding months. I looked around the crowded
Trusteeship Council Chamber of the United Nations Headquarters. It
was a gathering of delegates and representatives for the T ird Preparatory
Committee of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference,
back in April 2019.

Since its establishment in 1970, the NPT has had periodical Preparatory
Committee Meetings and Review Conferences, to assess the implementation
of the treaty and chart its future milestones. At the crux of the treaty is the
goal of addressing the greatest and universal threat to humanity posed by
nuclear weapons.

Serving as the Chair of the T ird Preparatory Committee (T ird NPT
PrepCom) accorded me the prerogative of a seat at the podium, with a
clear panoramic view of the chamber. However, the job came with a great
responsibility, which was to facilitate discussions, dialogues, and consultations
among the 191 NPT States Parties.

T e two-week T ird NPT PrepCom was not only f lled with a lot of
substantive deliberations. T rough extensive consultations and careful
stewardship, we also managed to address procedural hurdles that at times
distracted the focus of delegations. Specif cally, we secured an agreement
among States Parties to put in place the necessary prospective endorsement
for the President-designate of the Tenth NPT Review Conference, which

61