UN arms trade deal toothless, say critics

[Eugene]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/armstrade/story/0,10674,1528135,00.html

UN arms trade deal toothless, say critics

Richard Norton-Taylor
Thursday July 14, 2005
The Guardian

A new UN agreement to track trade in arms is attacked today as
toothless and riddled with loopholes by human rights groups which
have seen a copy of the secret deal.

The agreement, to be discussed at the UN today, excludes ammunition,
shells and explosives. Omitting explosives from the deal is
particularly pertinent in light of the London bombings, critics said.

<snip>

The agreement was negotiated behind closed doors and will be publicly
debated for the first time today. A legally binding agreement was
blocked by just a few countries, notably the US, Iran, and Egypt.

The agreement sets up a voluntary system to record the serial numbers
of small arms and light weapons - but not ammunition or explosives -
when they are sold or transferred between countries.

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