Making it Work - Control Arms

8 MAKING IT WORK: MONITORING AND VERIFYING IMPLEMENTATION OF AN ARMS TRADE TREATYspecificity within their own internal accounting systems and so reporting the informationunder an ATT should be relatively straightforward; moreover, states have acceptedsignificant reporting requirements under other regimes. 15The frequency of reporting on international arms transfersThe frequency with which states parties should be required to report on their internationalarms transfers is also an important consideration. Typically, informationexchanges on transfers of conventional arms under existing regimes take place eithersix-monthly, as in the case of the Wassenaar Arrangement, or annually, as is the caseunder the EU Code, the UN Register on Conventional Arms and the OSCE SmallArms Document. It would appear, then, that the minimal requirement should be forstates parties to an ATT to report on their international arms transfers on an annualbasis.3.1.2 Reporting onsteps taken toimplement the TreatySince an ATT will be implemented at national level through national legislation andthe development of adequate capacity for enforcement, it will be important that theTreaty also includes a requirement that states parties report on the progress that hasbeen made in fulfilling these basic provisions. Such reporting could require states toprovide information on a range of relevant issues, for example:■ Legislative developments that have relevance to national implementation of ATTcommitments;■ Administrative improvements, such as the establishment of interdepartmentalcommittees with a role in international arms transfer licensing;■ Improvements in international arms transfer control enforcement capabilities, suchas through recruitment and training programmes focussed on enhancing customs orborder control capacity; and■ Advances in information technology, such as the establishment or upgrading ofrelevant national registers or databases.As regards the frequency with which such reporting should take place, it would makesense for states parties to include any relevant information on steps taken to implementthe Treaty along with their annual returns relating to their international armstransfer activities.3.1.3 Reporting onassistance given orreceivedAs detailed in section 2.2 above, accession to an ATT and fulfilment of the obligationstherein will carry resource implications for a number of states, particularly developingcountries. All states, even those that do not manufacture conventional arms, are affectedin some way by international transfers of conventional arms; all states will thereforeneed to develop the wherewithal to exercise effective controls in this area.Some states parties may require technical and financial assistance in order to ensurethat they develop adequate national capacity and expertise for the effective control ofinternational arms transfers. Those states that provide or receive such assistanceshould therefore include information on relevant programmes alongside their otherreporting commitments under an ATT. Such reporting would demonstrate howcapacity-building exercises could be undertaken, facilitate objective assessment oftheir effectiveness and encourage further such collaboration between other donor andrecipient states.15 For example, under the1973 Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) states parties must report onthe number and type of permits and certificates that they issue for trade in species, states with which trade occurred and thespecies and number of specimens traded from each appendix under the Treaty. www.cites.org.