Spotlight
3rd Edition of Disarmament: A Basic Guide is Available Online — New Foreword by UN Messenger of Peace Michael Douglas
Announcements
DISARMAMENT – SELECTED EVENTS IN 2012
45th ANNIVERSARY "TREATY OF TLATELOLCO" — Officially known as the Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean, it opened for signature on 14 February 1967. OPANAL is the inter-governmental organization created by the Treaty of Tlatelolco to ensure adherence to the obligations of the Treaty. Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zones had been created in Antarctica and outer space before 1967; the Treaty of Tlatelolco was the first time such a ban was established covering a vast and populated area. Similar bans now exist for the South Pacific, Southeast Asia, all of Africa, and Central Asia.
DISARMAMENT – SELECTED EVENTS IN 2012
NUCLEAR SECURITY SUMMIT — The 2nd Nuclear Security Summit (NSS) will be held from 26 to 27 March in Seoul, the Republic of Korea. Nuclear security is a series of preemptive measures introduced to prevent internal or external threats related to nuclear materials, radioactive substances, and relevant facilities. The main issues to be discussed are: cooperative measures to combat the threat of nuclear terrorism; protection of nuclear materials and related facilities; and prevention of illicit trafficking of nuclear materials. The 1st NSS was held in April 2010 in Washington D.C.
DISARMAMENT – SELECTED EVENTS IN 2012
NUCLEAR NON-PROLIFERATION TREATY — The Preparatory Committee of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) holds its 1st session from 30 April to 11 May in Vienna. There are almost as many States Parties to the NPT as there are Members belonging to the United Nations. The NPT aims to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology, to foster the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, and to achieve the goal of nuclear disarmament.
DISARMAMENT – SELECTED EVENTS IN 2012
GLOBAL WEEK OF ACTION AGAINST GUN VIOLENCE — Global Week of Action Against Gun Violence will be observed from 7 to 13 May. Armed violence creates a climate of fear, undermines peace initiatives, exacerbates human rights abuses, prevents investment, disrupts markets, closes schools and clinics, and erodes governance structures. The Global Week of Action Against Gun Violence reminds us of the continuing need to take concrete actions in order to make the lives of world's citizens safer and more secure.
DISARMAMENT – SELECTED EVENTS IN 2012
ARMS TRADE TREATY — The United Nations Conference on the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) will be held from 2 to 27 July in New York. The process leading up to the ATT conference began in 2006 when the General Assembly passed resolution 61/89, entitled "Towards an arms trade treaty: establishing common international standards for the import, export and transfer of conventional arms". The purpose of the conference is "to elaborate a legally binding instrument on the highest possible common international standards for the transfer of conventional arms".
DISARMAMENT – SELECTED EVENTS IN 2012
UN PROGRAMME OF ACTION — The United Nations Conference to Review the Implementation of the Programme of Action on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons will be held from 27 August to 7 September in New York. The United Nations Programme of Action (PoA) on small arms and light weapons provides a framework to counter the illicit trade in such arms. While the PoA is non-binding, the U.N.'s Member States have agreed to report on implementation and to establish national coordination mechanisms to review and strengthen legislation, procedures and international cooperation.
UN Report on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons
DISARMAMENT – SELECTED EVENTS IN 2012
INTERNATIONAL DAY AGAINST NUCLEAR TESTS — The 3rd commemoration of the International Day Against Nuclear Tests will take place on 29 August. The International Day against Nuclear Tests is meant to galvanize the efforts of the United Nations, Member States, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, academic institutions, youth networks and the media in informing, educating and advocating the necessity of banning nuclear tests as a valuable step toward achieving a safer world.
DISARMAMENT – SELECTED EVENTS IN 2012
The Government of Finland is planning to host a 2012 Conference (dates to be decided) on the establishment of a Middle East zone free of nuclear weapons and all other weapons of mass destruction. Mr. Jaakko Laajava, Under-Secretary of State in Finland's foreign ministry, has been appointed as the facilitator for the 2012 conference. The 2010 Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) – which takes place every five years – called for a UN-sponsored conference in 2012 to establish a nuclear-free Middle East to be attended by all States in the region.