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668 Travaux préparatoires: United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime“Option 1 14“3. States Parties shall not permit the transit 15 of firearms, ammunition [, explosives]and other related materials until the receiving States Parties issue the correspondinglicences or authorizations.“Option 2 16“3. States Parties, before issuing in-transit licences or authorizations and permittingthe transit of firearms, ammunition and other related materials, shall verifythat the receiving States Parties have issued the corresponding import licences orauthorizations.“4. The importing State Party shall inform the exporting State Party, uponrequest, of the receipt of dispatched shipments of firearms, ammunition [, explosives]and other related materials.“[5. Written approval from the exporting country must be obtained before aState Party may authorize the re-export, retransfer, trans-shipment or other dispositionof firearms to any end-user, end use or destination other than as stated on the17, 18export licence or authorization.]”Notes by the Secretariat1. At the Vienna Technical Session on the Firearms Protocol, hosted by theGovernment of Japan on 11 and 12 October 1999 on the occasion of the fifth session ofthe Ad Hoc Committee, the need for an effective import and export system was generallyagreed upon. With regard to export authorizations, option 1 was broadly supported.There were questions raised with respect to how transfers and trans-shipments would takeplace within the European Union and between European Union member States and Statesoutside the European Union. Participants stated that there was no free circulation of firearmswithin the European Union, that exports were accompanied by transfer authorizations andthat transit shipments were accompanied by routing slips. It was noted that not all shipmentswithin the European Union were subject to a dual authorization regime. The deliberationsof the Technical Session are reflected in the report of the Chairman (seeA/AC.254/L.86, paras. 24 and 25).2. At the fifth session of the Ad Hoc Committee, Finland submitted a paper arguingthat the information exchange system under the Council of the European Communitiesdirective 91/477/EEC of 18 June 1991 on control of the acquisition and possession of14Original text (formerly paragraph 2, option 1), which was supported by Italy, Pakistan and Turkey.15The Republic of Korea shared the concerns noted by Japan (see footnote 3 above). Australia and the Netherlandsalso noted the need to clarify the meaning of the term “transit”.16Alternative (formerly paragraph 3, option 2) proposed by the United States (see A/AC.254/5/Add.1 and Corr.1),which was supported by South Africa (see A/AC.254/5/Add.5). Croatia, Kuwait and the Philippines also supported thisoption.17Addition proposed by the United States (see A/AC.254/5/Add.1 and Corr.1) and supported by the Holy See, Italy,the Philippines and Turkey. China, Pakistan and the Republic of Korea proposed the deletion of this paragraph. TheNetherlands suggested that such approval on re-export should not be obligatory unless the exporting country requested it.Nigeria proposed that re-exporting countries should submit written explanations indicating why and to whom the firearmswould be re-exported.18As indicated above, Japan suggested that recognition should also be imposed in the case of import from, export toand transit through non-States parties, with a view to reducing detour exports (see A/AC.254/5/Add.1 and Corr.1). That suggestionwas supported by the Republic of Korea.