P6_TA(2005)0204

Small arms (UN prepcom)

European Parliament resolution on small arms and light weapons

The European Parliament,

- having regard to its resolutions of 15 March 2001 [1], 15 November 2001 [2] and 19 June 2003 [3] on combating the proliferation and misuse of small arms and light weapons,

- having regard to Rule 103(4) of its Rules of Procedure,

A. whereas the UN Member States will meet in June 2005 for the third substantive session of the UN Open-Ended Working Group on Tracing Illicit Small Arms and Light Weapons,

B. whereas the UN Member States will meet in July 2005 for the Second Biennial Meeting of States to consider the implementation of the UN Programme of Action on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons, and in June/July 2006 for the UN Review Conference on the Programme of Action,

C. reaffirming its concern about the continuing proliferation of small arms and light weapons, which exacerbates armed conflict and instability, facilitates terrorism, undermines sustainable development and the rule of law, and contributes to grave violations of human rights and international humanitarian law,

D. affirming its intention to further engage the EU and its Member States in a constructive, regular dialogue on contents and priorities for EU policies in international and regional initiatives and negotiations on small arms and light weapons control,

E. convinced that the EU and its Member States have a critical role to play in the development and promotion of adequate international and regional standards to combat small arms and light weapons proliferation and misuse,

F. encouraged by the Council Presidency Statement on Small Arms of 17 February 2005 [4] to the Security Council of the United Nations, which welcomed the recognition of the explicit need for States to accelerate and conclude legally binding agreements on the tracing, brokering and transfer of small arms,

G. welcoming the active EU support in the UN Open-Ended Working Group on Tracing Illicit Small Arms and Light Weapons for a legal agreement and for the inclusion of ammunition for small arms and light weapons in the instrument's scope,

H. welcoming also the support expressed publicly by the Luxembourg Presidency in Parliament's plenary debate in Strasbourg on 11 May 2005, as well as by the Governments of Finland, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Ireland, Spain and Poland, for an Arms Trade Treaty and their efforts to work together with partners to build a regional and global consensus on the need for global legal standards for transfers of small arms and light weapons,

I. concerned, however, about the lack of EU commitment in the UN tracing negotiations to the creation of follow-up mechanisms to the tracing instrument that would allow the development of relevant bestpractice guidelines to complement minimum global standards,

J. hoping and expecting that more EU Member States will publicly declare their active support for efforts to build consensus on the need for the Arms Trade Treaty to ban arms transfers which entail a clear risk of contributing to serious violations of human rights or international humanitarian law,

K. regretting the slow progress of the UN broad-based consultations on combating illicit brokering of small arms and light weapons and the lack of a firm commitment to negotiating an international agreement on arms brokering controls,

L. recognising that, by the end of April 2004, the UN Firearms Protocol had come into force as a legally binding instrument once Poland and Zambia became the 40th and 41st countries to ratify it; stresses that the Protocol is the first global instrument to commit UN Member States to regulating the manufacture, export, import and transit of firearms,

1. Recommends that the Council and Member States promote a dynamic review mechanism for the negotiated UN tracing instrument, including the creation of a technical experts' group mandated to draft best-practice guidelines on the marking, record-keeping and tracing of small arms, light weapons, and related ammunition;

2. Encourages the six EU Member States which have not yet signed the UN Firearms Protocol to do so without delay;

3. Urges the Council and Member States to actively build a regional and international consensus on global standards for arms transfers based on existing obligations of States in international law, and on the need for an international Arms Trade Treaty;

4. Recommends in this context that the Council and Member States encourage strong debate at the Second Biennial Meeting of States in July 2005 on the UN Programme of Action with the objective of ensuring that negotiations on an Arms Trade Treaty start directly after the 2006 UN Review Conference on the Programme of Action;

5. Calls on the Council and Member States to relaunch their efforts to build a regional and international consensus on the need for an international treaty on the control of small arms and light weapons brokering;

6. Proposes that its responsible committee be authorised to draw up an own-initiative report in time for the 2006 UN Review Conference with the aim of scrutinising EU actions and policy with regard to small arms and light weapons and further engaging the Council and Member States on their relevant policies at regional and international level;

7. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Presidency of the Council, the Council, the Commission, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, and the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

[1] OJ C 343, 5.12.2001, p. 311.

[2] OJ C 140 E, 13.6.2002, p. 587.

[3] OJ C 69 E, 19.3.2004, p. 136.

[4] Council Presidency Statement, reference PRES05-013EN, 17.2.2005.

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