UN chief disappointed with fruitless small arms meeting

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan expressed disappointment on Monday over the failure of a UN conference on curbing the illegal trade in small arms.

"The secretary-general is disappointed that the United Nations Conference to review the implementation of the Program of Action on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons has ended without agreeing on an outcome document," Annan's spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.

But the UN chief acknowledged that the conference did succeed in "recalling the issue of small arms and light weapons to the attention of the international community which clearly remains committed to the Program of Action as the main framework for measures to curtail the illegal trade in these weapons."

Delegates from all parts of the world reaffirmed that the most urgent task is to take firm steps to control illicit arms brokers and this issue will be studied in depth by a UN intergovernmental expert group, which will hold its first session in November, according to the statement.

The two-week conference, meant to update an action plan adopted in 2001 and review efforts on the crackdown on the illegal trade of small arms, ended Friday without reaching a common ground as delegates remained divided on the best way to combat the illegal trade.

Some 2,000 representatives from governments, international and regional organizations and civil society attended the gathering at the UN Headquarters from June 26 to July 7.

Source: Xinhua