Arms Trade Treaty Universalization and Implementation Workshop for Central Asia and Mongolia

The United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Asia and the Pacific (UNRCPD) and the Government of Kazakhstan will hold an Arms Trade Treaty Universalization and Implementation Workshop for Central Asia and Mongolia, in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan, from 3-4 July 2019.

The ATT entered into force on 24 December 2014, regulating the international trade in conventional arms. Currently, the Treaty has 104 State Parties and 33 signatories that are not yet State Parties. However, participation of countries from the Asia and the Pacific region in the Treaty is low, with only 12 State Parties and 14 other signatories.

Against this background, the focus of the workshop is to promote the universalization and implementation of the Treaty and to strengthen its operation through expanding the membership in Central Asia and Mongolia. The workshop will provide a forum for discussion of the benefits of being parties to the ATT and effects on other commitments of the States, as well as contribute to building institutional capacity of the participating States for the future implementation of the Treaty. To achieve this, the regional workshop will involve government officials from relevant ministries, such as Foreign Affairs, Defence, Economy, Justice and export control agencies, together with experts from the ATT Secretariat, UNRCPD and NGOs.

Through this workshop, the Governments of Central Asian States and Mongolia will receive detailed information on the ATT and their capacity to move towards the accession or ratification to the Treaty will be enhanced.

The workshop is made possible with financial support from the ATT Voluntary Trust Fund.

For further information, please contact Mr. Yuriy Kryvonos, Director of the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Asia and the Pacific, at info@unrcpd.org