A SCAN OF EXISTING ARMS CONTROL TREATIES WITH LESSONS LEARNED

The spread of weapons to new environments has been prevented and the proliferation of entire classes of weapons have been controlled, reduced, or eliminate completely through the use of arms control treaties. But while armaments like nuclear weapons have generated the political will to be controlled through a series of treaties small arms have not – until recently- despite the international instability these weapons cause. Small arms are the clear gap in arms control. It is estimated that small arms used in conflict kill more than 350,000 people a year.1 Lessons can be learned from existing arms limitations agreements to chart a path in addressing the control gap of small arms. These lessons show that limiting the international trade of new small arms and ammunition is the first step in reducing the existing illicit stocks of these destabilizing weapons. This paper is presented in two parts. The first gives readers a basic outline in chronological order of the various arms control treaties that have been created since the Second World War. What the treaty is, how it came about, and the basics behind the treaty are briefly examined. The paper does not examine proposed arms control measures. The second part of this paper gives a brief examination of small arms. Themes from existing treaties are then presented as a way forward to address the current issue of small arms