Arms trade veto 'would weaken treaty'
US should not be given veto for mooted Arms Trade Treaty, campaigners argue
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By Matthew Champion. |  |
Thursday, 15, Oct 2009 10:13
By Matthew Champion.
The US should not succeed in gaining a veto on the Arms Trade Treaty being negotiated at the UN, critics said on Thursday.
Washington was the only country to vote against the treaty when it first came up last year, with China, Russia and Israel choosing to abstain.
Opposition to the treaty was a key aspect of the Bush administration's approach to the arms trade, with the White House at the time preferring to rely on national controls.
US secretary of state Hillary Clinton signalled a major break from this policy however when she said the country was ready to return to negotiations.
"The United States is prepared to work hard for a strong international standard in this area by seizing the opportunity presented by the conference on the Arms Trade Treaty at the United Nations," Mrs Clinton said.
"As long as that conference operates under the rule of consensus decision-making needed to ensure that all countries can be held to standards that will actually improve the global situation by denying arms to those who would abuse them, the United States will actively support the negotiations."
While campaigners say they welcome the change in heart from the US, which generates about two-thirds of the $55 billion arms trade, they have warned against the dangers of a possible veto for certain countries.
A joint statement from Oxfam and Amnesty International said such a condition would "weaken not strengthen a treaty".
Oxfam's international policy adviser Debbie Hillier said: "The world has waited a long time for the US to come on board to support global arms trade negotiations. Its involvement is vital for an effective agreement.
"Governments must resist any US demands to give any single state the power to veto the treaty as this could hold the process hostage during the course of
negotiations. We call on all governments to reject such a veto clause."
Ahead of make-or-break talks in New York this month to kick-start formal negotiations, Brian Wood of Amnesty International warned that "giving every single government the right to scupper the UN conference in 2012, the US position could hugely weaken or delay agreement to tackle irresponsible arms transfers that shatter countless lives worldwide".
The mooted Arms Trade Treaty intends to establish international standards and a regulatory framework for the import, export and transfer of conventional weapons.
Britain is seen as one of the leading lights in negotiating the treaty.
Armed violence claims 2,000 lives every day around the world, Amnesty International and Oxfam said, with the daily cost to Africa put at $19 billion.