Updates of the Website grip.org/en http://www.grip.org/en en http://www.grip.org/fr/logogrip.gif http://www.grip.org/en/ GRIP Asbl webmaster@grip.org The first Preparatory Committee (PrepCom) of the United Nations Conference for an Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) was held in New York from 12 to 23 July 2010, four years after the first UN resolution on this issue. Even though no actual element of a Treaty has been negotiated yet during this first PrepCom, the meeting is considered generally positive. Indeed the very principle of ... Thu, 26 Aug 2010 14:49:57 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=775 This Tuesday 17 August, Afghan President Karzai signed an order to disband all private security companies (PSC) in his country by the end of the year. According to the Afghan government, these companies undermine the work of the national security forces and contractors should be incorporated into the Afghan police. An estimated 52 PSCs are registered with the government, which represents 24,000 armed men. Nevertheless several companies did not register and in reality the contingent of contractors in Afghanistan is of around 40,000 men, from which 26,000 work with the U.S forces. Their main missions consist of protecting NATO convoys and securing international and national institutions like ministries or embassies. ... Thu, 19 Aug 2010 09:45:44 +0100 GRIP News http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=773 The Fourth Biennial Meeting of States on the implementation of the UN Programme of Action on Small Arms (SALW) took place in New York from 14 to 18 June 2010. Drawing on the 2008 meeting which managed to put the process back on track, the meeting reached a consensus-based outcome document focused on 3 specific topics (plus a miscellaneous point) of the Programme of Action (illicit cross-border trade, international cooperation and assistance, follow-up mechanism). ... Wed, 18 Aug 2010 12:52:37 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=772 The commemorations of Hiroshima and Nagasaki tragedies on 6 and 9 August will have a special meaning this year. For the first time for 65 years, the United-States, which committed one of the worst crimes of the last century by bombing these two cities, decided to take an active part in these days of remembrance ... Thu, 5 Aug 2010 22:32:29 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=771 Jean-Paul Hébert and Pierre Piérart died this week... Mon, 26 Jul 2010 14:05:17 +0100 GRIP News http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=770 On July 12 opened the first of four sessions of preparatory negotiations which should lead to the adoption in 2012 of a global and legally binding instrument establishing common standards for conventional arms transfers. Representatives of 192 States gathered until July 23 at the ... Mon, 19 Jul 2010 16:12:39 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=769 Since 2 July 2010, Bruno Barrillot, founder member of “Observatoire des armements”, has been one of the five winners of the “Nuclear Free Future Award” which honors individuals and organizations acting in favor of a world without nuclear weapons. Bruno Barrillot is awarded for his 20-year-long work helping victims of nuclear tests. He also wrote a book ... Wed, 7 Jul 2010 10:24:59 +0100 GRIP News http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=768 The European Commission has published a new book on the EU crisis management policy (Making the Difference? What Works in Response to Crisis and Security Threats). Federico Santopinto has contributed to this book with an article on the role of the EU development cooperation in this field. Even if less dramatic or visible than military missions, the EU cooperation policy, ... Thu, 1 Jul 2010 12:38:26 +0100 UE and international security http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=764 On Wednesday 16 June, GRIP and the 'Biting the Bullet'-Project (Saferworld and Bradford University) will co-organize, together with the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a side-event conference on “Preventing Illicit Small Arms (SALW) trafficking: Priorities for Strengthened Border Controls”. ... Fri, 11 Jun 2010 16:00:26 +0100 GRIP News http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=762 The Norwegian research institute NOREF (Norsk Ressurssenter for Fredsbygging) published an article by Federico Santopinto called «The Lisbon enigma: crisis management and coherence in the European Union». The article, which is ... Wed, 16 Jun 2010 12:06:34 +0100 UE and international security http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=763 On 9 June 2010, the United Nations Security Council adopted a fourth round of sanctions against the Islamic Republic of Iran with a strong majority. Brazil and Turkey voted against while Lebanon abstained. The idea of new sanctions dated from September 2009 but had been suspended after Iran accepted to join an international meeting on its nuclear program in October in Geneva. During this meeting, the negotiators concluded a draft agreement on uranium exchange between the countries of the Vienna Group (IAEA, the United-States, France and Russia) and Iran. However, the project failed after Iran changed its mind few weeks later. ... Thu, 10 Jun 2010 14:59:48 +0100 UE and international security http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=760 The current military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq put on the agenda a new modern version of one of the oldest jobs: mercenary. A mercenary is a versatile fighter essentially motivated by the desire for private gain.The early days of this activity go back to 2 500 BC but has developed to an unprecedented scale during the decolonization process in the 1960's and 1970's despite regional and international conventions to end this illegal activity. ... Tue, 1 Jun 2010 16:05:10 +0100 UE and international security http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=755 After a month of tough negotiations, the eighth NPT Review Conference concluded on Friday 28 May with an agreement welcomed unanimously by the 189 member-states to the Treaty. The final declaration restates the vital role of the NPT as the cornerstone of the non-proliferation regime. It has also revived the importance of the International Atomic Energy Agency after a period of exacerbated critics. ... Mon, 31 May 2010 15:12:18 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=754 On Thursday, May 27, 2010, the White House released the new "National Security Strategy" prepared by the president Barack Obama. The document breaks with the rhetoric of the two strategies enacted by the Bush Administration, the first in 2002 following the attacks of September 11, 2001; the second in 2006 (which had in fact disappeared from all official websites immediately after Barack Obama's inauguration). ... Mon, 31 May 2010 08:49:17 +0100 UE and international security http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=753 Since its foundation 30 years ago, GRIP has always striven to study issues related to arms trafficking and arms embargoes. For some years now, the expertise developed by GRIP researchers has been put to work for the United Nations within the framework of the investigations conducted on the respect of arms embargoes. As an example, Claudio Gramizzi ... Wed, 19 May 2010 12:33:30 +0100 GRIP News http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=751 Composed of 413 articles, 37 protocols and 65 declarations, for a total of more than 400 pages, the new European treaties amended by the Treaty of Lisbon are not easy to read. Besides, the fact that these articles do not have any title helping to identify the topic treated is another factor which complicates the reading. In order to face these difficulties, GRIP has decided to collect all the dispositions of the European Treaties which regards the external policy. ... Fri, 14 May 2010 15:37:17 +0100 UE and international security http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=750 On 1 May, Bernard Adam will be stepping down as director of GRIP (Group for Research and Information on Peace and Security), a post he has occupied for 31 years, since founding the organisation in 1979. With his forthcoming early retirement, Bernard Adam is not entirely leaving the GRIP as he will become president of the board of directors and take over from Jean-Paul Marthoz, who has occupied this post since 2003. In addition to this new role, ... Fri, 30 Apr 2010 13:52:22 +0100 GRIP News http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/default.asp?N=homepage&O=1 A new information portal, EthicalCargo.net, was put online, on April 20th, at the service of humanitarian and military organizations. The goal of this new internet clearinghouse is to reduce the use of air cargo companies involved in destabilizing commodity flows and arms trafficking in humanitarian aid logistics and the shipment of military equipment. Indeed, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), one of the instigators of the website, stresses that one ... Fri, 23 Apr 2010 12:30:30 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=746 In the continuation of his efforts to develop a positive dynamic for a nuclear disarmament, President Obama hosts an extraordinary summit on nuclear security on the 12th and 13th of April at Washington. 47 delegations are present among which seven represent nuclear States. However, it is unfortunate that the main worrying countries concerned by ... Mon, 12 Apr 2010 15:59:25 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/default.asp?N=homepage&O=1 Three years after the vote of resolution 61/89 by the United Nations General Assembly, 153 States (including the United States) came to a conclusion once again in favor of an Arms Trade Treaty. The negotiations from now on entered their last straight line before the organization of an International Conference on an Arms Trade Treaty, planned for 2012. ... Fri, 26 Mar 2010 15:06:44 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=742 According to the proposition submitted on the 1st of February 2010 by Robert Gates, the military budget of the United States is expected to exceed 700 billion dollars for the fiscal year 2011. Despite this impressive figure, the first two budgets presented by the Obama administration represents a clear break with those of George W. Bush, and show a real commitment to curb financial excesses of several major weapons programs, previously considered as untouchable. However, it seems ... Wed, 17 Feb 2010 12:20:57 +0100 UE and international security http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=739 Six years after the adoption of a Common Position on the control of arms brokering, some European Member States still lack the national legislation to control arms brokering activities. Other States still have to ensure the conformity of their legislation with the Common Position. ... Mon, 1 Feb 2010 07:32:51 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=738 In January 2010, ISIS - Europe (International Security Information Service), in collaboration with some twenty European think-tanks, amongst which GRIP, launched a website (http://www.csdpmap.eu) on the European Union military and civilian crisis management missions. ... Fri, 29 Jan 2010 09:05:51 +0100 GRIP News http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=737 During its 2009 Presidency of the European Union, Sweden re-launched the debate on the usability of battlegroups, a European military instrument conceived to facilitate the EU's involvement in global security. Despite their full operational capability since 2007 and the different crises that arose in the past two years, the battlegroups were never deployed. The failure to use this tool stems from the lack of sufficient political will by Member States to act in a common way. ... Fri, 22 Jan 2010 13:00:19 +0100 UE and international security http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=736 This report summarizes the main statistics on global military expenditure, arms production and international transfers of conventional arms. The data in this report are essentially from databases of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), an international standard since 1966, possibly supplemented by socio-economic statistics extracted from the databases of Eurostat, the World Bank, UN agencies or the press. ... Fri, 22 Jan 2010 12:58:52 +0100 UE and international security http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=735 Following the discussions which took place on November 10, 2009 within the General Affairs Committee of the Walloon Parliament on the issue of arms sales to Libya, GRIP sent a letter to the members of the Walloon Parliament. The purpose of this letter was to correct some statements made by representatives of the Federation of Trade Unions of Metalworkers FGTB (WSF / FGTB) Provinces of Liege-Luxembourg, in their letter sent on November 4, 2009 to the Walloon Parliament and to clarify some important concepts on small arms transfers. This Analysis reproduces the entire text of GRIP’s letter sent on December 4, 2009 to the members of the Walloon Parliament. Wed, 9 Dec 2009 08:43:39 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=732 In March 2006, an investigation into international drug trafficking allowed antimafia prosecutor from Perugia, Italy, to dismantle a vast arms dealing proceeding from China to Libya which involved several Italian intermediaries and high ranking Libyan government officials. The Italian authorities named the investigation “Operation Parabellum”. ... Mon, 16 Nov 2009 09:20:05 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=730 Permanent Structured Cooperation (PSC) is an enigma introduced by the Lisbon Treaty in the field of defence. Extremely technical and difficult to understand, it remained unperceived until now. The PSC is intended for “those Member States whose military capabilities fulfill higher criteria (…)”, which are willing to regroup on the basis, amongst other, of “approved objectives concerning the level of investment expenditure on defense equipment”. If its contents still has to be entirely defined, the PSC nevertheless has three remarkable characteristics for an initiative related to defense. ... Thu, 5 Nov 2009 15:14:29 +0100 UE and international security http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=729 In the last four decades, Syria has often been considered one of the pet peeves of the West and Israel because of its support to terrorist groups acting in the Middle East and Europe. This stigmatization has been masking the suspicion that Damascus wants to acquire nuclear weapons. The conjecture started in the seventies when the Syrian civilian nuclear program has been launched, and grew after the Israeli attack on the Deir-ezzor site in 2007. ... Tue, 3 Nov 2009 15:49:47 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=728 The European defence market always stayed out of the European community field. In order to integrate it into the European single market ensuring the competition, the European commission set out a directive about the intra-community arms transfers, inviting the member states to harmonize theirs conditions of transfers, in the final purpose of getting an European defence industry more stronger and more competitive. ... Thu, 22 Oct 2009 11:01:13 +0100 UE and international security http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=727 The mineral richness of the DRC is no longer to be proven, especially in the provinces of North and South Kivu, where there are large deposits of cassiterite, coltan and gold. Coltan and cassiterite are particularly sought after in the electronics industry because they are necessary for the manufacture of mobile phones, computers and printed circuits. Recently, there has been a growing attention from the international community and the civil society for the exploitation of natural resources as vectors of violence, especially in eastern DRC. ... Mon, 12 Oct 2009 09:11:59 +0100 Peace and conflicts in Africa http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=726 Belgium is a small country but has dwindling influence on the international chessboard, with the notable exception of Central Africa and principally the Congo, where it has been able to retain an expertise and influence far above its real economic and geostrategic weight in the region. This paradox is not due to the defense of special interests or political power games, which had long since been abandoned by Belgian politicians. ... Mon, 5 Oct 2009 15:29:26 +0100 Peace and conflicts in Africa http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=725 The September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and the increased presence of Al-Qaeda militants in Pakistan have brought back to the agenda the necessity of an amplified security for the nuclear facilities all around the country. In this perspective Pakistani authorities have created agencies in charge of the nuclear management with the financial support of the United States. ... Mon, 28 Sep 2009 09:01:41 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=721 The Iranian nuclear program has been at the heart of the international community concerns for seven years and this crisis calls into question the real motivations behind the Iranian attempt to possess the nuclear power. The Ayatollah Regime is to a large extent responsible for the current situation of mistrust. However a better understanding of the Iranian claims requires a comprehensive study of the political and religious context in the Middle East. Since the collapse of Saddam Hussein Iran is trying to regain its lost power but the established strategies are the wrong ones. ... Wed, 16 Sep 2009 12:48:46 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=719 Despite the adoption of a voluntarist law in March 2003, there is no real control of arms brokers in Belgium. Moreover, the regionalization of the competence in the area of arms export in Belgium and the adoption of the EU Common Position on the control of arms brokering, which both happened a few months after the adoption of the Belgian law, had as consequences that the law’s objectives are not achieved and that Belgium does not comply to the European norms. ... Wed, 16 Sep 2009 12:47:45 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=720 Used for its incendiary, smoke or illuminating effects, the deployment of white phosphorus weapons have proliferated in recent or ongoing conflicts, often indiscriminately affecting civilian populations and goods in densely populated areas. White phosphorus weapons are incendiary weapons whose use is regulated by Protocol III of the 1980 Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons ... Wed, 19 Aug 2009 10:36:28 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=718 A lack of controls on arms brokers operating outside their home state remains a critical loophole in the combat of undesirable brokering activities. Policy-makers are sometimes skeptical whether extraterritorial brokering controls are cost-effective and can be implemented. This paper considers enforcement challenges of extraterritorial brokering controls and presents different policy options ... Mon, 3 Aug 2009 16:40:17 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=717 The improper management of conventional ammunition and explosives poses significant safety and security risks. Frequent ammunition depot explosions and diversions from ammunition stocks of state actors testify to the relevance of the issue to Africa ... Fri, 26 Jun 2009 15:43:42 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=716 There are quite a few ways of tracing the ammunition for small arms and light weapons. But despite all these various techniques, the tracing deficit is still dramatic – notably due to the absence of registration and the lack of adequate marking ... Thu, 18 Jun 2009 12:31:10 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=705 This paper was presented on February 13, 2009 at the Université de Liège, during a conference on “Les armes de neutralisation momentanée: une réponse à l’insécurité grandissante?”. The PowerPoint presentation is attached. Should we or should we not equip the police with the so-called “less-than-lethal” weapons, for example the FN303 launcher produced by FN Herstal or electrical weapons such as the Taser? These new weapons have the advantage of providing law enforcement with a greater range of options before resorting to the conventional, and lethal, armaments. However, the risks of misuse and abuse, sometimes unsuspected technological innovations issued from military research, and the lack of a proper legal framework, raise many questions about the acceptability of these new generations of weapons. An independent and multidisciplinary evaluation of the “less-than-lethal” concept is absolutely necessary to meet certain legitimate demands from the police forces while ensuring very strict compliance with ethical and legal rules. Mon, 23 Feb 2009 11:21:34 +0100 Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=709 Contrary to received ideas, France and the United Kingdom are not the only nuclear powers in Europe. Under NATO, the United States has stationed nuclear weapons in several European countries since 1954. Left over from the Cold War, these weapons were originally intended to counter the superior conventional Warsaw Pact troops. From more than 7,000 tactical nuclear weapons in dozen European countries in the middle of the 1970s, the arsenal has been shrinking since the collapse of the USSR, totalling 350 weapons in 2007. Since the start of the current decade, the question of what the weapons are for, and therefore indirectly the question of their removal, has been raised with increasing frequency ... Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=708 The European Union’s role on the international scene is not easy to understand. The rule of unanimity and the complexity of its institutional mechanisms have kept the EU from imposing itself on the international scene with a clearly defined role. The result is a rather blurred positioning, where the Union appears and disappears according to the various crisis, the context, the mood of the European Council’s members. The recent wars in Georgia and Gaza are the latest examples. Faced with an emergency, the Union does not seem capable of diplomatic action - this was paradoxically demonstrated by the prompt intervention of the French Presidency in Georgia. This does not mean that the EU is absent from the international arena. After the diplomatic turmoil which regularly happens in major international crisis, the EU discretely reappears, notably through various instruments whose impact is above all long term. Security strategies http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=706 This report summarises the main statistics on global military expenditure, from production to international conventional weapons sales. The data in the report are mostly culled from SIPRI databases, at times supplemented by socioeconomic statistics from Eurostat, the World Bank, United Nations agencies and the specialist press. <BR> In 2007, global military expenditure totalled 1,339 billion dollars, representing 2.45% of global gross domestic product or around 198 dollars per inhabitant. The United States alone accounts for 45% of total expenditure. <BR> The accumulated arms production turnover of the world’s top 100 arms manufacturers was estimated at 347.4 billion dollars in 2007, when the top 100 arms producers comprised 45 US companies, 23 European Union companies and 32 companies established elsewhere in the world ... Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=704 Belgium’s arms export system was altered in several ways in 2003. Firstly, the law of 5 August 1991 which underlies the exercise of legal controls of arms exports underwent a considerable modification by strengthening the duties to be met and incorporating the European Union Code of Conduct’s criteria in law, making them binding. Secondly, legal competence for arms exports was divided among four levels of power – the federal state and the three Regions of Belgium. <BR> Have these changes impacted on Belgium’s foreign policy, which is still managed federally? How do the different levels of power exercise this competence? Are there any coordination mechanisms? ... Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=703 Wallonia's arms export in the Belgian, European and global context This presentation was made on 15 January 2009 at a public audience of the Commission for General Affairs of the Walloon Parliament, Namur, as part of the assessment of the legal system organising the granting of arms export licences. In his speech, the author first reset the reality of walloon export within the global geopolitical context, in particular after the emergence of the ‘conflicts prevention’ concept and of an increasing awareness of the excessive proliferation of small arms in the world. He then exposed the development in the Belgian law on arms export and its 2003 changes, including, amongst other, the regionalisation of the competence, stressing the risk of a lack of coherence in the Belgian foreign policy. The author also covered the issue of arms exports within the European context. Regarding transparency, he pointed at the improved presentation of the walloon annual reports and made a proposal for new improvements. Arms control http://www.grip.org/en/siteweb/dev.asp?N=simple&O=702