Middle East Treaty Organization

METO began facilitating the creation of a draft treaty text that would form the basis for discussion on a WMDFZ Treaty in 2017 through track 1.5-2 diplomacy. Roundtable negotiations to discuss the treaty were organized among senior diplomatic and former diplomatic figures from regional governments and representatives from international organizations, as well as subject experts. The draft treaty text facilitated by METO's process was brought to the United Nations General Assembly by Egypt on 22 December 2018, alongside a proposal to launch an annual conference to discuss the zone. The UN General Assembly resolved to convene an annual meeting on the establishment of a Middle East WMDFZ. The first annual conference was held from 18 November to 22 November 2019 at UN Headquarters in New York, presided over by the UN Permanent Representative from Jordan. Almost all states of the region attended the conference, including the 22 members of the Arab League and Iran, as well as four nuclear-armed states China, France, Russia, and the United Kingdom, alongside other observer states and international organizations. The only regional country that did not participate was Israel. The conference adopted a Final Report and Political Declaration articulating the participating member states' commitment to pursue the elaboration of a consensus-based, legally binding treaty to establish a WMDFZ in the Middle East through an open and inclusive process involving all states in the region. They agreed to meet again from 16 to 20 November 2020. The third conference was held 14–18 November 2022. The fourth was held 13 to 17 November 2023, with the fifth scheduled for 18 to 22 November 2024. A description of all conferences held to date and planned is available from the website of the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA). == METO in Publications and Media ==