JCIC-XXXIII:(U) BELARUSIAN OPENING PLENARY

1. (U) This is JCIC-XXXIII-005.



2. (U) At paragraph 3 below is the official translation of
the text of the Belarusian Statement that was delivered at
the Opening Plenary Meeting of the Thirty-third Session of
the START Treaty's Joint Compliance and Inspection Commission
(JCIC), held at the U.S. Mission on November 13, 2008.



3. (S) Begin text:

Official Translation

Statement
by tQDelegation of the Republic of Belarus
at the Plenary Meeting of the
Thirty-third Session of the
Joint Compliance and Inspection Commission

Geneva November 13, 2008

Esteemed Mr. Chairman,

Esteemed Representatives, Heads, and Members of the
Delegations of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Russian
Federation, the United States of America, and Ukraine,

The Delegation of the Republic of Belarus greets its
START Treaty partners as we begin the work of this latest
session of the Joint Compliance and Inspection Commission,
JCIC-XXXIII.

At JCIC-XXXII we witnessed the constructive resolution
of a number of issues related to implementation of the START
Treaty. Specifically we signed the S-series JCIC Joint
Statement on Changes to the Boundary of Drovyanaya ICBM Base
for Silo Launchers of ICBMs, as well as the Agreement and
Joint Statement on the new procedure for elimination of SS-24
ICBM solid rocket motor cases.

At the same time, we note that a number of issues
concerning notification and inspection activities under the
Treaty remain unresolved. We hope that a substantive
dialogue at JCIC-XXXIII will make it possible to resolve
existing concerns, with a view to implementing the Treaty.

The agenda of our session provides for consideration of
the set of issues related to expiration of the START Treaty,
which is a cornerstone of international security. We trust
that there will be a thorough exchange between the Parties
regarding their positions on this issue, which will make it
possible for us to develop a sound solution.

The Delegation of the Republic of Belarus is prepared
to work constructively in order to develop practical
solutions to all the issues.

Thank you for your attention.

End text.



4. (U) Taylor sends.
TICHENOR


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