AG/RES. 2270 (XXXVII-O/07) Confidence- and Security-Building in the Americas

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY,

HAVING SEEN the Annual Report of the Permanent Council to the General Assembly (AG/doc.4698/07 corr. 1), in particular the section on the matters entrusted to the Committee on Hemispheric Security;

RECALLING its resolutions AG/RES. 1121 (XXI-O/91) and AG/RES. 1123 (XXI-O/91), on strengthening peace and security in the Hemisphere; AG/RES. 1179 (XXII-O/92), AG/RES. 1237 (XXIII-O/93), AG/RES. 1284 (XXIV-O/94), AG/RES. 1288 (XXIV-O/94), AG/RES. 1353 (XXV-O/95), AG/RES. 1409 (XXVI-O/96), AG/RES. 1494 (XXVII-O/97), AG/RES. 1566 (XXVIII-O/98), AG/RES. 1623 (XXIX-O/99), AG/RES. 1744 (XXX-O/00), AG/RES. 1801 (XXXI-O/01), AG/RES. 1879 (XXXII-O/02), AG/RES. 1967 (XXXIII-O/03), AG/RES. 1996 (XXXIV-O/04), and AG/RES. 2113 (XXXV-O/05), on transparency and confidence- and security-building measures in the Americas (CSBMs); and AG/RES. 2246 (XXXVI-O/06), "Cooperation on Some Matters of Security in the Hemisphere";

TAKING NOTE of the Chairman's Conclusions of the First Meeting of the Forum on Confidence- and Security-Building Measures, held in Washington, D.C., on April 25 and 26, 2005 (CSH/FORO-I/doc.11/05); and the Rapporteur's Report of the Second Meeting of the Forum on Confidence- and Security-Building Measures, held in Washington, D.C., on November 29, 2006 (CSH/FORO-II/doc.11/06 corr. 1);

TAKING NOTE ALSO of United Nations General Assembly resolution 61/79, "Exchange of information on confidence-building measures in the field of conventional arms"; and

CONSIDERING:

That in the Declaration on Security in the Americas, adopted at the Special Conference on Security, held in Mexico City, Mexico, in October 2003, member states affirmed that "[c]onfidence- and security-building measures and transparency in defense and security policies contribute to increasing stability, safeguarding hemispheric and international peace and security, and consolidating democracy," and recommended that the Committee on Hemispheric Security meet periodically as the "Forum for Confidence- and Security-Building Measures" in order to review and evaluate existing confidence- and security-building measures and, if appropriate, consider new measures that would make it possible to ensure progress in this area; and

That, in the Declaration of Managua of the Seventh Conference of Ministers of Defense of the Americas, member states reaffirmed the fundamental importance of adopting and implementing confidence and security-building measures of the Organization of American States for strengthening bilateral, subregional, and hemispheric relations, contributing to international stability, peace, cooperation, and security,

RESOLVES:

1. To urge member states to continue implementing, in the manner they deem most appropriate, the recommendations contained in the Declaration of Santiago and the Declaration of San Salvador on Confidence- and Security-Building Measures and in the Consensus of Miami: Declaration by the Experts on Confidence- and Security-Building Measures: Recommendations to the Summit-Mandated Special Conference on Security.

2. To commend member states that have regularly submitted their reports on the application of the confidence- and security-building measures (CSBMs) contained in the above-mentioned Declarations and Consensus; and to urge all member states to provide or continue to provide reports and information on the application of CSBMs to the General Secretariat, by July 15 of each year.

3. To instruct the Permanent Council to convene the Third Forum on Confidence- and Security-Building Measures, to meet in the second half of 2007, to examine the application of confidence- and security-building measures throughout the region and consider next steps.

4. To establish the goal of universal participation by all member states, by 2010, in the United Nations (UN) Register of Conventional Arms and the UN Standardized International Reporting of Military Expenditures; and to renew its request that member states provide said information to the Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS) by July 15 of each year.

5. To encourage member states to share bilateral and subregional experiences regarding the development of standardized methodologies for measuring military expenditures and inform the Forum on Confidence- and Security-Building Measures of the results of those experiences.

6. To urge member states to generate additional trust and transparency through the development and exchange of defense white papers by all OAS member states, taking into account the guidelines adopted by the Permanent Council in its resolution CP/RES. 829 (1342/02), "Adoption of the Guidelines on Developing National Defense Policy and Doctrine Papers."

7. To request the General Secretariat to make available to member states a secure communication network for the instantaneous exchange of information and notifications on confidence- and security-building measures.

8. To request the General Secretariat to update each year, on the basis of information submitted by member states each year by July 1, the Roster of Experts on Confidence- and Security-Building Measures, and to circulate it to the member states each year by July 30.

9. To request the General Secretariat to continue to contribute to greater confidence- building and transparency by improving the Committee on Hemispheric Security Website in order to facilitate access to member states' reports and by sending periodic notes verbales on approaching reporting deadlines.

10. To request the Secretary General to forward this resolution to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the Secretary General of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the Association of South-East Asian Nations Regional Forum (ARF), and other pertinent regional organizations.

11. To instruct the Permanent Council and the General Secretariat, as appropriate, to carry out the activities mentioned in this resolution within the resources allocated in the program-budget of the Organization and other resources.

12. To request the Permanent Council to report to the General Assembly at its thirty-eighth regular session on the implementation of this resolution.