Ban salutes 'historic' UN arms treaty

April 03, 2013 | 09:15

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United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday hailed the landmark global arms treaty as a milestone that would help prevent human rights abuses.

Secretary General of the UN, Ban Ki-moon (AFP Photo/Elvis Barukcic)

NEW YORK: United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday hailed the landmark global arms treaty as a milestone that would help prevent human rights abuses.

"It is a historic diplomatic achievement - the culmination of long-held dreams and many years of effort. This is a victory for the world's people," Ban said in a statement.

"It will be a powerful new tool in our efforts to prevent grave human rights abuses or violations of international humanitarian law.

"And it will provide much-needed momentum for other global disarmament and non-proliferation efforts."

The UN General Assembly earlier Tuesday adopted the first-ever accord to regulate the $80-billion-a-year conventional arms trade.

It aims to force countries to set up national controls on arms exports. States would also have to assess whether a weapon could be used for genocide, war crimes or by terrorists or organized crime before it is sold.

AFP

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