Rights and Realities

Yet again in the final hours, the Arms Trade Treaty was blocked. This time because of a cynical move by Iran, Syria and North Korea. In the Byzantine world of the UN, the exchange between the Chair and the three wreckers was so polite...

I'm in New York for final talks to agree the Arms Trade Treaty that I've been campaigning for for nearly twenty years. Two days ago things were looking as bleak as the weather here in NYC. The climate in the room for many of us was...

Want to get straight to the loopholes? Skip ahead At 4pm yesterday (9pm UK time, if you're counting), a packed UN conference room received the final draft of the Arms Trade Treaty from Ambassador Moritan. After nearly 20 years of...

It's self-evident that to control the arms trade you have to actually control all the things that kill, maim and brutalise people, and capture all the ways that arms get into the wrong hands. Maybe I take an overly simplistic view of...

After several false starts, the Arms Trade Treaty negotiations finally got underway yesterday. The Chair of the conference, Ambassador Moritan, was keen to make up some lost time and kept everyone in the room for an extra hour beyond...

It’s late on Thursday evening on day four of the Arms Trade Treaty preparatory conference. As I write, states participating in the conference have as yet not reached an agreement on the crucial rules of procedure that will determine...

Love was truly in the air today at the UN Arms Trade Treaty talks, being of course valentines day. Some handed out roses, we handed out campaign stickers . Our message to delegates: “Show some love for the arms trade treaty” and “make...

So here I am, sitting in a cold New York, writing our first Blog on the eve of the start of the fifth and final Arms Trade Treaty preparatory negotiations, the culmination of nearly 20 years of work to establish a set of strong and...