What are the guiding principles of the Westminster Committee?

[Downing St. Network]

Founded in London in 2006 the Westminster Committee on Iran aims to increase dialogue and understanding between Tehran and British parliamentarians with a view to avoiding military conflict with Iran. The Committee aims to build cross-party political support both in Britain and internationally. The Committee opposes nuclear weapons proliferation in any form. It respects international law and the bodies that are responsible for upholding it.

The Committee holds regular meetings and roundtable discussions. It advocates for balanced and objective reporting on Iran and genuine international diplomacy in all dealings with Tehran. To ensure a free and frank exchange of views, the Committees meetings are generally held in private and under Chatham House rules. However, the Committee also holds of public meetings and produces publications and welcomes the support and involvement of members of the public. The Committee is not a campaigning organisation per se nor is it an official parliamentary body or All Party Parliamentary Group. Instead it aims to fill the space between these two types of bodies in order to increase dialogue, understanding and trust.


GUIDING PRINCIPLES

1. The proliferation of nuclear weapons would seriously increase the danger of nuclear war. The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons has a vital role to play in preventing the proliferation of nuclear weapons. Every effort should be made to implement the Treaty in all its aspects to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons and other nuclear explosive devices, without hampering the peaceful uses of nuclear energy by States parties to the Treaty.

2. The International Atomic Energy Agency is the competent authority responsible to verify and assure, in accordance with the statute of the Agency and the Agency's safeguards system, compliance with its safeguards agreements with States parties undertaken in fulfilment of their obligations under article III, paragraph 1, of the Treaty, with a view to preventing diversion of nuclear energy from peaceful uses to nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices. Nothing should be done to undermine the authority of the International Atomic Energy Agency in this regard.

3. The Committee respects the inalienable right of all the parties to the Treaty to develop research, production and use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes without discrimination and in conformity with articles I, II as well as III of the Treaty.

4. The Committee acknowledges the important and difficult role that the media has in conveying complex and opposing viewpoints to the broader public. It calls on journalists, editors and broadcasters to uphold the highest standards of objectivity in reporting on Iran. It also calls on the media to recognise that following their collective failure to adequately examine the case for war against Iraq, the onus is on them to not to ensure dispassionate, accurate and critical analysis of the case for military intervention against Iran.

[Westminster Committee on Iran]

On 25th January 2008, Anders B. Johnsson, General Secretary of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, Geneva wrote a letter stating that"...the objectives of the Westminster Committee on Iran coincide with those of the IPU, which promotes dialogue to foster understanding and avoid conflict."

[Nik from NYC]

Realistically, what is the point in signing the NPT? The UK and US continually back a regime in Israel that circumvented the NPT entirely and possesses a nuclear arsenal which neither the UK or the US will criticize. The NPT is like paying the mob to protect you.

When will Israel's program be brought to the table?

It's a shame that no one uses these forums.