The Fletcher School was pleased to welcome Ambassador László Molnár of Hungary on September 22, 2003. During a luncheon hosted by the International Security Studies Program, he offered students the “inside scoop” on preparations being made for an upcoming review of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

Ambassador Molnár is the chairman of the Preparatory Committee (PrepCom) for the 2005 Review Conference of the NPT. The PrepCom, assesses the implementation of each article of the NPT and facilitates discussion among states party to the treaty prior to the Conference. The recent April/May 2003 meeting was the second of three that will be held prior to the Review Conference.

Ambassador Molnár suggested that, while it is difficult to quantify the success of the NPT, “up until now it has been surprisingly effective.” He was especially pleased since earlier predictions had been quite pessimistic. For example, in 1963, officials feared that within twenty years there would be twenty more additional nuclear states. This didn’t happen, according to the Ambassador, because: each article of the NPT is binding on all member states at all times and in all circumstances. All member states will be held accountable for their strict compliance with all their obligations. This obligation, coupled with the states’ agreement in 1968 to provide technological know-how to all states without nuclear weapons, has tempered the aspirations for developing nuclear weapons.

Nonetheless, the PrepCom is held amid fears about the nuclear nonproliferation regime overall, particularly given the lack of commitment by some states -- nuclear weapons states and non-nuclear weapons states alike -- to their respective treaty obligations. Despite Cuba's long-awaited accession to the Treaty in November 2002, the NPT continues to face both internal and external challenges. Recent events have heightened international attention on nuclear non-proliferation, including the September 2002 US National Security Strategy doctrine that established pre-emptive strikes as official US policy, the US invasion of Iraq to rid it of weapons of mass destruction, and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's (DPRK) decision to withdraw from the NPT and restart its nuclear facilities at Yongbyon.

Although the Ambassador remains optimistic regarding the future, he does feel that the “stakes are high” and that if the NPT fails, it seems likely that other weapons conventions will fail as well. Progress could be achieved in a number of ways, including a willingness to adopt greater transparency and for individual member states to report back to these conferences on their non- proliferation and disarmament activity. Such accountability could be supplemented by more intrusive inspection and verification agreements. Should neither of the above achieve their declared objectives, clear cases of non- compliance will need to be addressed, and a large degree of responsibility will fall to the general public and elected representatives in the nuclear weapons states. As such, innovative approaches are needed to further and solidify progress and to devise tools and norms that can enforce the treaty obligations.

BIO CLIP

Ambassador Dr.Laszlo Molnar is the Permanent Representative of Hungary to the United Nations in New York. He is a seasoned Hungarian career diplomat and an expert on European integration and arms control and non-proliferation issues.

Before being appointed to his current position in 2002, Ambassador Molnar served for more than two years as the Consul General of the Republic of Hungary in NY. Prior to assuming this position, he served in numerous high-level posts in the Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, including the Ministerial Commissioner for Non-Proliferation and Arms Control.

Ambassador Molnar's other postings included service as Deputy Permanent Representative of Hungary to the United Nations and in the Security Council of the UN, and serving as member of the Hungarian Delegation to the Negotiations on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe.

Ambassador Dr. Laszlo Molnar received his Masters Degree in International Relations in 1982 and his PH.D in International Relations in 1988 from the Budapest University of Economic Sciences. Notably, he was a visiting scholar at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.