Small arms trafficking is a transnational menace: UK assertion on the UN Security Council

As the Secretary-General’s report highlights, diversion of illicit small arms and light-weight weapons persists throughout your entire weapon lifecycle – from the level of manufacture, switch, and storage, to their eventual use or disposal.

This is exacerbated by porous borders, poor stockpile administration, and rising challenges reminiscent of 3D printing. Disrupting this sample is vital to defending lives in battle zones and stopping armed violence.

I’ll make three factors.

First, illicit trafficking of small arms and light-weight weapons is a transnational menace. The UK helps capacity-building and cross-regional collaboration to implement arms embargoes, enhance tracing, and strengthen stockpile administration.

Through the UK-supported AmTag pilot programme, Somalia has develop into the primary nation to deploy chemical taggants which is able to start to render its nationwide ammunition stockpiles absolutely traceable.

We commend and assist regional and sub-regional approaches, together with the African Union’s Silencing the Guns initiative. The UK is proud to fund the Nairobi Protocol evaluation, led by the Regional Centre on Small Arms and Light Weapons (RECSA) and the UN Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR), underlining our dedication to tackling this menace on the regional stage. 

Second, multilateral devices and transparency mechanisms stay very important. The Programme of Action, the Arms Trade Treaty, the Global Framework, and the UN Register of Conventional Arms all play a task in stopping diversion, selling accountable transfers, and strengthening nationwide controls.

The UK appears ahead to contributing to the Programme of Action’s professional group on rising applied sciences to handle challenges posed by polymer, modular, and 3D-printed weapons and to discover alternatives for improved marking and tracing.

Finally, illicit weapons diversion disproportionately impacts girls and ladies. The UN estimates that 70 to 90 % of conflict-related sexual violence incidents contain weapons and firearms. 

As we commemorate this yr the twenty fifth anniversary of the Women, Peace and Security agenda, efficient typical arms management can play a significant position in prevention. Women must be on the centre of those efforts.

 The UK stays dedicated to working to strengthen sanctions enforcement, improve arms management, and assist disarmament and post-conflict stabilisation efforts.