Arms Treaty - CathNews New Zealand https://cathnews.co.nz Catholic News New Zealand Mon, 30 Jul 2012 05:23:33 +0000 en-NZ hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.7.1 https://cathnews.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/cropped-cathnewsfavicon-32x32.jpg Arms Treaty - CathNews New Zealand https://cathnews.co.nz 32 32 70145804 Talks on arms treaty at UN fail to reach decision https://cathnews.co.nz/2012/07/31/vatican-supported-talks-on-arms-treaty-fail-to-reach-decision/ Mon, 30 Jul 2012 19:30:22 +0000 http://cathnews.co.nz/?p=30696

The Vatican has backed efforts to draft a landmark international treaty to control the $NZ74 billion arms industry, but discussions by more than 170 countries ended without a decision. Diplomats said the door is still open for further talks, with the possibility of a draft arms treaty being brought to the United Nations General Assembly Read more

Talks on arms treaty at UN fail to reach decision... Read more]]> The Vatican has backed efforts to draft a landmark international treaty to control the $NZ74 billion arms industry, but discussions by more than 170 countries ended without a decision.

Diplomats said the door is still open for further talks, with the possibility of a draft arms treaty being brought to the United Nations General Assembly for a vote by the end of the year.

While most UN members states favoured a strong arms treaty during month-long talks in New York, a small minority — including Syria, North Korea, Iran, Egypt and Algeria — opposed global arms control.

But arms-control activists ultimately blamed the United States and Russia for the inability to reach a decision, as both these nations said there was not enough time left for them to clarify and resolve issues they had with the draft arms treaty.

The Vatican's involvement in discussions was problematic from the outset, since its delegation — along with that of the Palestinians — was denied recognition as a full member.

Nevertheless, the Vatican's Archbishop Francis Chullikatt made clear his delegation's "abiding support for addressing illicit flows of arms".

"The Holy See continues to believe that an arms trade treaty can make an important difference for millions of people confronted with insecurity, deprivation and fear linked to the unregulated and irresponsible transfer of arms and ammunition, and the illicit acquisition of such by criminal and unauthorised non-state actors," he said.

"The treaty would help also in the promotion of a world more respectful of human life and human dignity."

Archbishop Chullikatt advocated stronger provisions to help victims of armed conflicts, by requiring states to offer or receive assistance for their "care, rehabilitation and social and economic reintegration".

Sources:

Vatican Radio

Reuters

AlertNet

Image: Dawn.com

Talks on arms treaty at UN fail to reach decision]]> 30696 Holy See tells UN: Arms treaty will help peace https://cathnews.co.nz/2012/02/21/holy-see-tells-un-arms-treaty-will-help-peace/ Mon, 20 Feb 2012 18:33:32 +0000 http://cathnews.co.nz/?p=19560

As heads of several united Nations bodies labelled the current attempts to regulate trade in conventional weapons as "patchwork" and "simply not adequate," Head of the Holy See's delegation, Archbishop Francis Chullikatt, told the preparatory meeting of the UN Conference on the Arms Trade Treaty that arms are are not the same as other goods traded on the Read more

Holy See tells UN: Arms treaty will help peace... Read more]]> As heads of several united Nations bodies labelled the current attempts to regulate trade in conventional weapons as "patchwork" and "simply not adequate," Head of the Holy See's delegation, Archbishop Francis Chullikatt, told the preparatory meeting of the UN Conference on the Arms Trade Treaty that arms are are not the same as other goods traded on the international market.

Chullikatt said respect for human dignity and the value of human life must be the founding principle of any treaty.

Ahead of the final preparatory UN meeting in July, the diplomats called for a comprehensive arms trade treaty to make people safer by reducing the human cost of inadequate controls on transfers.

"The Holy See shares the view that the principal objective of the treaty should not be merely the regulation of the conventional arms trade but should be, above all, the disarming of the international illicit market," Chullikatt said.

"Provisions relating to assistance for victims must be maintained, and if possible, strengthened, giving attention also to the prevention of illicit arms proliferation, by reducing the demand for arms which often feeds the illicit market."

Chullikatt said it is the Vatican's view that an Arms Trade Treaty can provide an important contribution to the promotion of a true culture of peace, but he warned that mechanisms for treaty review need to be credible and and quickly adaptable to incorporate new developments.

Sources

Holy See tells UN: Arms treaty will help peace]]> 19560