Ambassador Galuška congratulated Mr. Zerbo on his recent assuming of the post of Executive Secretary of the CTBTO and assured him of unrelenting support and cooperation by the Czech Republic in promoting early entry into force of the CTBT, as well as in fostering its verification regime. In the view of Ambassador Galuška, the forthcoming Article Fourteen Conference to be held in New York at the end of September will be a good occasion to increase the visibility of the Organization and turn attention of the general public to the CTBT issues.

The Executive Secretary of the CTBTO acknowledged the long-time support by the Czech Republic and acquainted Ambassador Galuška with the functioning of the CTBT´s verification regime. He specifically mentioned prompt and professional detection of three North Korean nuclear tests by the Provisional Technical Secretariat (PTS), as well as wide-ranging possibilities to make use of the CTBTO´s most sophisticated technologies for civil purposes which were proved successful among others in connection with the Fukushima Daiichi disaster in Japan in March 2011. Mr. Zerbo also elaborated on the idea of a Group of Eminent Persons that should help the Treaty enter into force.

After the meeting with the Executive Secretary Zerbo, Ambassador Galuška was offered a tour around the facilities of the International Data Centre (IDC).

Photo: PTS CTBTO