Opening Statement at the UN Conference on the Arms Trade Treaty

Remarks
Donald A. Mahley
U.S. Ambassador
U.S. Representative to the Arms Trade Treaty Conference
UN Conference on the Arms Trade Treaty
New York City
July 12, 2012

I thank you Mr. President,

It gives me great pleasure to address this gathering on behalf of the United States. Mr. President, the enormous energy, diplomatic skill, and patience that you have demonstrated in leading us up to this point is indeed extraordinary, and I pledge the United States will continue to work closely with you and our colleagues around the room to achieve the consensus on an effective arms treaty in order, as Secretary Clinton clearly stated, “to ensure that all countries can be held to standards that will actually improve the global situation by denying arms to those who would abuse them.”

We seek a treaty that establishes high international standards for controlling the transfer of arms on par with current best practices. A key benefit of having such standards will be to reduce illicit arms trafficking. The international community as a whole suffers from illicit trafficking, which arms repressive regimes, criminal syndicates, and insurgent groups and terrorist organizations, and weakens legitimate governments and the rule of law. So the international community must create additional barriers to the illicit and irresponsible international transfer of arms to those who have little regard for the most fundamental standards of decency and civilization…