UK presses US on human rights clause in arms trade treaty
Source: The Guardian
British and European foreign ministers are preparing to defy Washington at talks over an arms trade treaty, amid fears the US will use its diplomatic clout to water down proposals for the first comprehensive laws governing weapons sales.
More than 150 countries have sent delegations to the UN for the special month-long session that begins on Monday, with many hoping that 15 years after the idea of an arms trade treaty was first mooted by Nobel peace prize winners, and seven years after the UK took an unexpected lead on the issue, the UN is now close to an agreement that could transform the $1tn arms industry.
A draft of the treaty, agreed this year, states that governments must not approve arms sales to countries where there is a "substantial risk of a serious violation" of human rights. If the draft treaty was in place now, it would prevent Russia from sending arms to Syria.
But the US wants the wording of this key component of the draft treaty changed to say governments need only "consider" factors such as human rights records before authorising weapon sales.
Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jul/02/human-rights-arms-trade-treaty
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