In 2012 the United Nations will convene a conference to negotiate an arms trade treaty (ATT). The resulting treaty is expected to legally obligate states to provide information on their arms transfers and transfer control systems. This Policy Paper provides the first comprehensive overview of existing UN instruments that require states to report on their arms transfers, transfer controls and enforcement measures. It outlines the types of information required to assess compliance with an ATT, extracts lessons learned from the existing instruments and identifies areas of duplication. By highlighting the challenges that states face when reporting to existing mechanisms, providing constructive solutions and emphasizing the positive contributions to be made by non-governmental organizations, this report lays the foundation for a relevant and robust ATT reporting mechanism.

Contents

1. Introduction
2. International reporting mechanisms on arms transfers and transfer controls
3. Challenges for reporting implementation of an arms trade treaty
4. Non-governmental monitoring of international arms transfers
5. Options for reporting on arms transfers and implementation of an arms trade treaty
6. Conclusions

Summaries

Summary in English
Résumé en français
Resumen en español
Summary in Arabic

Questionnaire responses

Responses to the SIPRI questionnaires cited in the Policy Paper appear below (for states that have given permission).

Related publications

'Transit and trans-shipment controls in an arms trade treaty', SIPRI Background Paper, Paul Holtom and Mark Bromley
'Import controls and an arms trade treaty', SIPRI Background Paper, Paul Holtom and Mark Bromley

About the authors

Paul Holtom (United Kingdom) is Director of the SIPRI Arms Transfers Programme. His areas of research include transparency in the field of international arms transfers, UN arms embargoes and illicit arms trafficking; and European arms exports and export controls. His most recent publications include ‘Ukrainian arms supplies to sub-Saharan Africa’, SIPRI Background Paper (Feb. 2011); ‘The neverending flow: international transfers of used arms and military equipment’, Export vooruzheniy (Apr. 2011, co-author); and ‘Reporting to the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms’, SIPRI Fact Sheet (May 2011, co-author).

Mark Bromley (United Kingdom) is a Senior Researcher with the SIPRI Arms Transfers Programme. His areas of research include arms acquisitions in Latin America, transparency in the field of international arms transfers and the illicit trafficking of small arms and light weapons (SALW). His recent publications include Air Transport and Destabilizing Commodity Flows , SIPRI Policy Paper no. 24 (May 2009, co-author) and ‘National reports on arms exports’, SIPRI Fact Sheet (Mar. 2011, co-author).

Publisher: SIPRI
ISBN 978-91-85114-65-8
42 pp.
July 2011
Price: €7.50 per copy plus €5 shipping and handling per order

States responding to the SIPRI questionnaires on reporting to United Nations instruments on international arms transfers and transfer controls

An x indicates that the state completed and returned a SIPRI questionnaire. If the respondent has given permission for the completed questionnaire to be released, click on the x to download the response.