MISSING PIECES - Inter-Parliamentary Union

THEME 2
THEME 2 STEMMING THE FLOW OF SMALL
ARMS – CONTROL ISSUES
Relatively few of the countries most affected by gun violence are
major producers of small arms, so weapons are often sourced
abroad. 1 Frequently, such foreign-supplied arms are repeatedly
recycled within or across borders for years, amplifying the
impact of the initial sale. Given the havoc they cause in some areas, an
international response to prevent fresh arms supplies is required. This theme
examines the most common ways that guns are trafficked and provides key
recommendations for policies to stop illicit transfers and those supplies—
whether technically ‘authorised’ or not—that are particularly damaging to
human security.
Global arms transfers take several forms: weapons may be sold, bartered,
or given away free. Many governments concern themselves with
illicit trafficking, where they consider legality to be based narrowly on
whether a deal had government approval. 2 Yet the illicit trade is intimately
connected to the legal trade—and sometimes the two are hard to distinguish.
In fact, the question of what is a legal arms deal, as opposed to an
illegal one, hinges on the question of what is allowed under national and
international law, and the absence of adequate national laws covering
arms trading is one of the main challenges. A wilful lack of transparency
on even the authorised trade by many states, including some major producers
and exporters, further muddies the picture. 3
International arms transfers fall into three categories:
• authorised arms transfers that are explicitly approved by governments
of both the export and import countries, as well as any transit countries
with trans-shipment controls in place (as noted below, the fact that a
transfer is authorised by a government does not preclude it from being
in breach of international law and/or having grave consequences for
human security);
• grey market transactions that involve arms shipments officially declared
for one destination or client—and approved by a government on that
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