> NATO: Focus on Arms Trafficking
>
>
> (New York, March 25, 2003) - NATO should make the fight against arms
> trafficking a top priority in Central and Eastern Europe, Human Rights
> Watch said today. On March 26, foreign ministers of the seven countries
> invited to join NATO are expected to attend the signing of the accession
> protocols in Brussels.
>
> The seven invitees-Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania,
> Slovakia and Slovenia-are expected to join the alliance by May 2004,
> following ratification of the accession protocols by parliaments of
> existing NATO states.
>
> While the world is focused on the threat of weapons of mass destruction
> and the current war in Iraq, the dangers posed by the uncontrolled trade
> in conventional weapons must not be ignored, Human Rights Watch said.
>
> According to Human Rights Watch research, potential future NATO members
> have trafficked conventional weapons to warring parties who are
> committing serious human rights abuse.
>
> "NATO needs to set a clear standard on the arms trade and help countries
> meet it," said Lisa Misol, arms trade researcher with Human Rights
> Watch. "Countries that fail shouldn't be admitted until they've cleaned
> up the trade."
>
> The flow of small arms and light weapons, as well as heavier military
> equipment, from Central and Eastern Europe to conflict zones in Africa
> and elsewhere has undermined human rights protections for civilians in
> the recipient countries.
>
> Human Rights Watch has documented that:
>
> · Arms traffickers are often able to bypass lax laws to supply weapons
> to illegal destinations.
> · Governments continue to sell surplus weapons from their arsenals to
> trouble spots around the globe.
> · Governments continue to authorize arms exports to destinations where
> the weapons risk fueling human rights abuses and armed conflict.
>
> NATO and member states have helped promote important reform efforts in
> several invitee countries, Human Rights Watch noted, but further work is
> needed.
>
> "National parliaments should raise the arms trade issue when accession
> comes up for a vote," Misol said. She added that many NATO countries
> also need to show leadership by improving their own arms trade behavior.
>
> NATO's secretary-general, Lord George Robertson, has highlighted the
> importance of arms trade controls. In a December 2002 letter to Human
> Rights Watch, he identified "responsible arms trading practices" as a
> component of the common values NATO embodies and noted: "Support for
> arms control is an indispensable component of the [NATO] Alliance's
> security."
>
> Further information on arms trading from Central and Eastern Europe is
> available at: <http://www.hrw.org/arms/cee.php>.