AG/RES. 1879 (XXXII-O/02): Confidence- and Security-Building in The Americas

(Adopted at the fourth plenary session held on June 4, 2002)

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY,

HAVING SEEN the Annual Report of the Permanent Council (AG/doc.4059/02) and in particular the section on confidence- and security-building in the Americas;

BEARING IN MIND that, under Article 2 of the Charter of the Organization of American States, one of the essential purposes of the Organization is to strengthen the peace and security of the continent;

RECALLING its resolutions AG/RES. 1121 (XXI-O/91) and AG/RES. 1123 (XXI-O/91), on strengthening peace and security in the Hemisphere, and 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), and AG/RES. 1801 (XXXI-O/01) on confidence- and security-building measures;

EMPHASIZING the importance of the Declaration of San Salvador and the Declaration of Santiago on Confidence- and Security-Building Measures;

NOTING the significant progress made in identifying and applying confidence- and security-building measures since the adoption of the Declaration of Santiago, which has helped to reduce factors that generate distrust and has contributed to the promotion of transparency and mutual confidence;

NOTING WITH SATISFACTION the study entitled "A Common Standardized Methodology for the Measurement of Defence Spending," prepared by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) in November 2001 at the request of the governments of Argentina and Chile, which constitutes a step toward the transparency contemplated in the Declaration of San Salvador on Confidence- and Security-Building Measures of 1998; and

AWARE of the mandates in this matter given to the OAS by the Heads of State and Governments at the Third Summit of the Americas in Quebec City,

RESOLVES:

1. To urge member states to implement, in the manner they deem most appropriate, the recommendations of the Declaration of San Salvador and the Declaration of Santiago on Confidence- and Security-Building Measures and of resolution AG/RES. 1179 (XXII-O/92).

2. To call on all member states to provide to the General Secretariat by July 15 of each year information on the application of confidence- and security-building measures, in light of the provisions of the said Declarations of San Salvador and Santiago, and resolutions AG/RES. 1284 (XXIV-O/94) and AG/RES. 1288 (XXIV-O/94).

3. To commend member states that have regularly submitted their reports on the application of confidence- and security-building measures.

4. To request the Secretary General to maintain and facilitate access to the comprehensive inventory of confidence- and security-building measures based on information submitted by member states.

5. To urge member states to continue promoting transparency in defense policy with regard to, among other things, modernizing the armed forces, including changes in their structure and composition, the acquisition of equipment and materiel, and military expenditures, by considering the guidelines prepared by the Permanent Council on developing national defense policy and doctrine papers.

6. To request that the Permanent Council transmit its guidelines, once they are approved, on developing national defense policy and doctrine papers for the consideration of the Fifth Conference of Defense Ministers of the Americas to be held in Santiago, Chile in November 2002.

7. To request that the Inter-American Defense College provide, when asked to do so, technical advice to the Committee on Hemispheric Security and member states on preparing defense policy and doctrine papers.

8. To establish as a goal universal participation in the United Nations (UN) Register of Conventional Arms, and the UN Standardized International Reporting of Military Expenditures, in accordance with the pertinent resolutions of the UN General Assembly; and to renew its request that member states provide said information to the Secretary General by July 15 of each year.

9. To reiterate its mandate to the Permanent Council to hold annually, a special meeting of the Committee on Hemispheric Security with the participation of experts dedicated to the analysis and exchange of information on confidence- and security-building measures in the region, especially those identified in the said Declarations of San Salvador and Santiago.

10. To request the Secretary General to update each year, on the basis of information submitted by member states, the roster of experts on confidence- and security-building measures, and to circulate it to the member states each year by July 15.

11. To instruct the Permanent Council to continue to support the participation of the Committee on Hemispheric Security in regional security meetings and conferences, such as the Conference of Defense Ministers of the Americas.

12. To instruct the Permanent Council to continue to encourage the exchange of experiences in the area of confidence- and security-building measures with other regions, which may include the exchange of information between the Committee on Hemispheric Security and other international organizations working on the subject, such as the UN, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), and the Association of South-East Asian Nations Regional Forum (ARF).

13. To request the Permanent Council to hold the next round of OAS-OSCE consultations and OAS-ARF consultations.

14. To renew its invitation to the General Secretariat and Inter-American Defense Board to prepare a complete and updated regional inventory of confidence- and security building measures based on reports presented by member states.

15. To request that the Inter-American Defense Board complete, for the Permanent Council, by October 30, 2002, an inventory of confidence and security building measures undertaken in other regions of the world so that it may be available for consideration at regional meetings, including the Conference of Defense Ministers of the Americas, the Summit-mandated Meeting of Experts on Confidence- and Security-Building Measures in the Region, and the Summit-mandated Special Conference on Security.

16. To instruct the General Secretariat to make operational the Organization of American States Information System (OASIS) communication network for the instant exchange of information on security matters, including confidence- and security-building measures.

17. To request the Permanent Council to forward any information or recommendations that result pursuant to this resolution to the preparatory body of the Special Conference on Security as a contribution to the preparations for that Conference.

18. To instruct the Permanent Council to carry out the activities mentioned in this resolution within resources allocated in the program-budget and other resources.

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

20. To request the Secretary General to transmit this resolution to the Secretary-General of the UN and the Secretary General of the OSCE, the Chairman of the ARF, and to other pertinent regional organizations.