Resolution adopted by the General Assembly  on 24 December 2021          [on the report of the First Committee (A/76/444, para. 93)]       76/233. Problems arising from the accumulation of conventional  ammunition stockpiles in surplus        The General Assembly,    Mindful of the dangers posed by unplanned explosions at munitions sites and  the diversion of materials from conventional ammunition stockpiles to the illicit  market, including for the manufacture of improvised explosive devices,    Emphasizing that thousands of people have died and the livelihoods of entire  communities have been disrupted as a result of accidental ammunition depot  explosions and that diversion from ammunition stockpiles has contributed to the  intensity and duration of armed conflict and sustained armed violence around the  world,1     Recognizing the need to encourage the full involvement of both women and men  in ammunition management practice and policy,    Noting that conventional weapons and their ammunition are items for which, in  principle, action can be taken to improve the regulation of transfers and prevent their  diversion to illicit trafficking,    Recognizing the urgency of addressing the security and safety risks emanating  from ineffective stockpile management around the world,2     Bearing in mind a through-life management approach to tackle problems related  to ammunition in a comprehensive manner, including those related to diversion,  __________________    1  See S/2011/255.    2  See S/2015/289.   A/RES/76/233  General and complete disarmament: problems arising from the  accumulation of conventional ammunition stockpiles in surplus   21-19664 2/5      Noting the requirement of the Arms Trade Treaty 3  that States parties thereto  shall designate competent national authorities in order to have an effective and  transparent national control system to regulate the transfer of relevant ammunition  and munitions,    Recalling the report of the Group of Experts on the problem of ammunition and  explosives4 and the report of the Group of Governmental Experts established pursuant  to resolution 61/72 to consider further steps to enhance cooperation with regard to the  issue of conventional ammunition stockpiles in surplus,5     Welcoming the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development 6 and  its recognition of the relevance for development of a significant reduction in illicit  arms flows and of strengthened national institutions for building capacity at all levels,  in particular in developing countries, to prevent violence and combat terrorism and  crime,    Recalling the recommendation contained in paragraph 27 of the report of the  Open-ended Working Group to Negotiate an International Instrument to Enable States  to Identify and Trace, in a Timely and Reliable Manner, Illicit Small Arms and Light  Weapons,7 namely, to address the issue of small arms and light weapons ammunition  in a comprehensive manner as part of a separate process conducted within the  framework of the United Nations,    Taking note of the discussions on munitions management practice in the  framework of Protocol V8 to the Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the  Use of Certain Conventional Weapons Which May Be Deemed to Be Excessively  Injurious or to Have Indiscriminate Effects,9    Noting with satisfaction the work and measures pursued at the regional and  subregional levels with regard to the issue of conventional ammunition,    Recalling its decision 59/515 of 3 December 2004 and its resolutions 60/74 of  8 December 2005 and 61/72 of 6 December 2006, its resolution 63/61 of 2 December  2008, by which it welcomed the report of the Group of Governmental Experts  established pursuant to resolution 61/72 to consider further steps to enhance  cooperation with regard to the issue of conventional ammunition stockpiles in surplus,  its resolutions 64/51 of 2 December 2009, 66/42 of 2 December 2011, 68/52 of  5 December 2013, 70/35 of 7 December 2015, 72/55 of 4 December 2017 and 74/65  of 12 December 2019 and its decision 75/552 of 31 December 2020,    Welcoming the conclusion of the work of the Group of Governmental Experts  established pursuant to resolution 72/55 and the submission of its report,10    Recalling the recommendations of the Group of Governmental Experts  established pursuant to resolution 61/72, and encouraging the use, as appropriate, of  the voluntary International Ammunition Technical Guidelines to improve the safety  and security of ammunition storage sites,  __________________    3  United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 3013, No. 52373.    4  See A/54/155.    5  See A/63/182.    6  Resolution 70/1.    7  A/60/88 and A/60/88/Corr.2.    8  United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 2399, No. 22495.    9  Ibid., vol. 1342, No. 22495.    10  See A/76/324.   General and complete disarmament: problems arising from the  accumulation of conventional ammunition stockpiles in surplus  A/RES/76/233   3/5 21-19664      Recalling with appreciation the establishment, within the Secretariat, of the  SaferGuard knowledge resource management programme, 11  including its online  implementation support tools,    Noting that the voluntary International Ammunition Technical Guidelines are  used by national authorities and an expanding network of partners from international  and regional organizations, non-governmental organizations and the private sector in  an increasing number of States to support ammunition stockpile management efforts,    Emphasizing the need to consider integrating ammunition management  measures in accordance with the International Ammunition Technical Guidelines,  where relevant, in mandates of United Nations peacekeeping operations and special  political missions,    Recognizing the importance of appropriate national ammunition management  structures and procedures, including laws and regulations, training and doctrine,  equipment and maintenance, personnel management and finances and infrastructure  in order to ensure sustainability in ammunition management, and emphasizing in this  regard the central role of the provision of technical assistance and capacity-building  to Member States, upon their request,    Noting with appreciation the ongoing work of the Ammunition Management  Advisory Team to support interested States in the safe and secure management of  ammunition through the provision of technical advice and services,    1.  Encourages all interested States to assess, on a voluntary basis, whether,  in conformity with their legitimate security needs, parts of their stockpiles of  conventional ammunition should be considered to be in surplus, and recognizes that  the security of such stockpiles must be taken into consideration and that appropriate  controls with regard to the security and safety of stockpiles of conventional  ammunition are indispensable at the national level in order to eliminate the risk of  explosion, pollution or diversion;    2.  Appeals to all interested States to determine the size and nature of their  surplus stockpiles of conventional ammunition, whether they represent a security or  safety risk, their preferred means of destruction, if appropriate, and whether external  assistance is needed to eliminate this risk;    3.  Encourages States in a position to do so to assist interested States within  a bilateral framework or through international or regional organizations, including  through activities conducted under the umbrella of the SaferGuard knowledge  resource management programme, on a voluntary and transparent basis, in elaborating  and implementing programmes to eliminate surplus stockpiles or to improve stockpile  management;    4.  Encourages all Member States to examine the possibility of developing  and implementing, within a national, regional or subregional framework, measures to  address accordingly the illicit trafficking related to the accumulation of such  stockpiles;    5.  Notes with appreciation initiatives at the international, regional and  national levels that shed light on improving the sustainable management of  ammunition, including through the implementation of the International Ammunition  Technical Guidelines, recognizing the relevance of continued discussions and  coordination in this regard;    6.  Welcomes the release of the updated version of the International  Ammunition Technical Guidelines in 2021 and the intention to update the Guidelines  __________________    11  A/63/182, paras. 72–73.   A/RES/76/233  General and complete disarmament: problems arising from the  accumulation of conventional ammunition stockpiles in surplus   21-19664 4/5    on a regular basis, as well as the continued implementation of the SaferGuard  programme, managed by the Office for Disarmament Affairs of the Secretariat;    7.  Also welcomes the continued application of the International Ammunition  Technical Guidelines in the field, including the online implementation support tools  and training materials, takes note of the support guides and the availability of  translations of the Guidelines in various languages, which encourages States in a  position to do so to offer support to the SaferGuard programme, and calls upon all  United Nations entities to make full use of the Guidelines when supporting national  authorities;    8.  Encourages consideration of the integration of ammunition management  measures, where relevant, in the mandates of peacekeeping operations, including  through the training of personnel of national authorities and peacekeepers, utilizing  the International Ammunition Technical Guidelines;    9.  Welcomes the ongoing work carried out by the SaferGuard programme to  operationalize its quick-response mechanism, which allows ammunition experts to be  deployed to assist States, upon request, in the management of ammunition stockpiles,  and encourages States in a position to do so to provide technical expertise or financial  support to the mechanism;    10. Encourages States wishing to improve their national ammunition stockpile  management capacity, wishing to prevent the growth of conventional ammunition  surpluses and wishing to implement wider risk mitigation to contact the SaferGuard  programme, as well as potential national donors, regional organizations or other  organizations, as appropriate;    11.  Encourages States, as appropriate, to consider ammunition management  as an intrinsic part of their actions for achieving relevant targets of the Sustainable  Development Goals related to the reduction of illicit arms flows and the prevention  of violence through strengthened national institutions, and to consider, where  relevant, developing national, regional and subregional indicators based on this  understanding;    12. Also encourages States, where relevant, to develop voluntary national  action plans on the safe and secure management of conventional ammunition, and  acknowledges the utility of information-sharing and the benefit of good practices  among States, as appropriate;    13. Recalls with appreciation the series of informal consultations convened  within the framework of its resolution 72/55 throughout 2018 and 2019 that focused  on matters of conventional ammunition management within the United Nations  system and beyond and that sought to identify urgent issues pertaining to the  accumulation of conventional ammunition stockpiles in surplus on which progress  can be made;    14. Recalls the informal paper presented by Germany on the informal  consultative process undertaken within the framework of resolution 72/55, as well as  the inputs, both written and oral, received from Member States on the same matter;    15. Welcomes the report of the Group of Governmental Experts established  pursuant to resolution 72/55 contained in document A/76/324 and the substantive  recommendations contained therein;    16. Encourages States to consider the recommendations contained in the  report of the Group of Governmental Experts established pursuant to resolution 72/55,  in particular regarding steps to address the safety and security challenges arising from  conventional ammunition in a comprehensive manner;   General and complete disarmament: problems arising from the  accumulation of conventional ammunition stockpiles in surplus  A/RES/76/233   5/5 21-19664      17. Decides to establish an open-ended working group to elaborate a set of  political commitments as a new global framework that will address existing gaps in  through-life ammunition management, including international cooperation and  assistance, without prejudice to national legal systems addressing national  ammunition ownership, possession and use, and will be part of a comprehensive  framework to support safe, secure and sustainable through-life ammunition  management at the national, subregional, regional and global levels, building upon  and complementing existing frameworks, whereas cooperation at the regional and  subregional levels should be considered on a voluntary basis;     18. Also decides that the open-ended working group shall take into account  the recommendations contained in the report of the Group of Governmental Experts  established pursuant to resolution 72/55 and the views of all participating States and  be informed by the series of informal consultations convened within the framework  of its resolution 72/55 throughout 2018 and 2019, the informal paper presented by  Germany on the informal consultative process and the inputs, both written and oral,  received from Member States on the same matter;    19. Further decides that the open-ended working group shall convene for two  5-day sessions in New York in 2022 and for one 5-day session in Geneva in 2023,  preceded by informal consultations as required, within available time frames and with  the contribution of relevant international and non-governmental organizations, and  shall hold a two-day organizational session in advance of the first meeting;    20. Decides that the open-ended working group shall submit a report on its  work, including recommendations on a set of political commitments as a new global  framework on conventional ammunition, to the General Assembly at its seventy- eighth session;    21. Requests the Secretary-General to provide the support necessary to  convene the sessions of the open-ended working group;    22. Reiterates its decision to address the issue of conventional ammunition  stockpiles in surplus in a comprehensive manner;     23. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its seventy-seventh  session, under the item entitled “General and complete disarmament”, the sub-item  entitled “Problems arising from the accumulation of conventional ammunition  stockpiles in surplus”.