Conventional arms control

The UK works with other countries through several treaties on conventional weapons to build confidence, ensure security and reduce threats to civilians. These treaties include:

• UN Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW) - regulates the use of conventional weapons in conflicts which may be deemed to cause excessive suffering to combatants or indiscriminate harm to civilians.
• Conventional Armed Forces in Europe Treaty (CFE) - 30 NATO and former Warsaw Pact countries have agreed to limit holdings of certain military equipment from the Atlantic to the Urals.
• Vienna Document – confidence and security building measures for participating states in the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).
• Open Skies Treaty – participating OSCE states can fly unarmed surveillance flights over one another.

 

Arms Trade Treaty

In 2006 the UN General Assembly adopted a Resolution calling for an Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), to curb the irresponsible transfers of conventional weapons.

Following the vote, an unprecedented number of countries submitted their views to the UN Secretary-General on the ATT. These are available from the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) website.

These submissions will assist the Group of Government Experts who will meet 3 times in New York to consider the issue. Both Brazilian and British experts participate in the Group.

We continue to work closely with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the UK defence industry to ensure that we take into account their views when drawing up the UK policy towards the ATT. This work has included:

• jointly hosting an ATT seminar in London with the Defence Manufacturers Association (Sep 2007)
• assisting Oxfam to host events in the margins of UN General Assembly meetings in support of the ATT.

 

Land mines

The UK ratified the Ottawa Convention in 1998, prohibiting the use, production and stockpiling of anti-personnel mines.

The UK is also one of the biggest donors for mine action. We contribute around £10m annually to demining programmes in the worst affected developing countries where mines regularly kill, maim and disrupt lives.

These countries include Afghanistan, Angola, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Democratic Republic of Congo and Sudan.

 

Cluster munitions

Unexploded ordnance from cluster munitions can remain in the ground for decades, threatening the lives of civilians and hampering post-conflict reconstruction and development.
We’re working with the Ministry of Defence (MOD) and Department for International Development (Dfid) to tackle this humanitarian cost.

The UK Government wants to secure a legally-binding instrument that prohibits the use, development, transfer and production of those cluster munitions which cause unacceptable harm to civilians.

 

Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW)

The UK played a leading role in securing support for a negotiating mandate on cluster munitions in Nov 2007.

We will continue to work hard with other states to ensure the CCW adopts a legally binding instrument as soon as possible.

 

Small arms and light weapons

There are an estimated 875m small arms and light weapons in global circulation – that’s one gun for every 7 people.

The threat and use of these weapons cause enormous suffering around the world because they:

• exacerbate conflicts
• support violent crime and terrorism
• hamper post-conflict reconstruction
• make it harder to tackle poverty and sustainable development.

 

What are we doing to tackle these weapons?

We're implementing the UN Programme of Action on small arms and light weapons. It's important to exchange information and work with states to build their capacity to better manage their stockpiles. We’re promoting better ways of tracing small arms and contributing to projects which destroy excess stocks.

We're also supporting national and regional initiatives to tackle illicit transfers of these weapons. Our earlier work on global guidelines for transfers is now being taken forward as part of our work towards an Arms Trade Treaty.