Fact Sheet

Bureau of Arms Control

Washington, DC

September 8, 2005

United Nations Register of Conventional Arms

The United Nations Register of Conventional Arms is a voluntary arrangement

established on January 1, 1992, under General Assembly resolution 46/36 L of

December 9, 1991, entitled "Transparency in Armaments." The resolution called

upon all member states to provide annually by May 31 of each year, to the

Secretary-General, relevant data on imports and exports of conventional arms to

be included in the Register. UN Member States are also invited to report on

their military holdings and procurement through national production and

relevant policies. In the same resolution, the General Assembly declared its

determination to prevent the excessive and destabilizing accumulation of arms

in order to promote stability and strengthen international peace and security,

taking into account the legitimate security needs of States and the principle

of undiminished security at the lowest possible level of armaments.

The technical procedures for the Register were developed by a Panel of Experts

appointed by the Secretary-General in 1992. The recommendations by the Panel

were endorsed by the General Assembly. Periodic reviews of the operation of the

Secretary-General in 1994, 1997, 2000, and 2003. Paragraph 2 (a) of the annex

to General Assembly resolution 46/36 L and subsequent General Assembly

resolutions identify the following seven categories of equipment on which

Member States are requested to supply data to the Register: battle tanks,

armored combat vehicles, large caliber artillery systems, combat aircraft,

attack helicopters, warships, and missiles or missile systems. Resolution 58/54

endorsed the recommendations of the 2003 Group of Governmental Experts, inter

alia, to expand the Register to include transfers of man-portable air defense

systems (MANPADS) and artillery between 75 and 100 mm. Based on the Group of

Experts convened in 1994, 1997, 2000, and 2003, the categories and their

definitions to be used for reporting to the Register are as follows:

I. Battle Tanks: Tracked or wheeled self-propelled armored fighting vehicles

with high cross-country mobility and a high-level of self protection,

weighing at least 16.5 metric tons unladen weight, with a high muzzle

velocity direct fire main gun of at least 75 millimeters caliber.

II. Armored Combat Vehicles: Tracked, semi-tracked, or wheeled self-propelled

vehicles, with armored protection and cross-country capability, either

designed and equipped to transport a squad of four or more infantrymen, or

armed with an integral or organic weapon of at least 12.5 mm caliber or a

missile launcher.

III. Large-Caliber Artillery Systems: Guns, howitzers, artillery pieces

combining the characteristics of a gun or a howitzer, mortars or

multiple-launch rocket systems, capable of engaging surface targets by

delivering primarily indirect fire, with a caliber of 75 mm and above.

IV. Combat Aircraft: Fixed-wing or variable-geometry wing aircraft designed,

equipped, or modified to engage targets by employing guided missiles,

unguided rockets, bombs, guns, cannons, or other weapons of destruction,

including versions of these aircraft which perform specialized electronic

warfare, suppression of air defense or reconnaissance missions. The term

"combat aircraft" does not include primary trainer aircraft, unless

designed, equipped, or modified as described above.

V. Attack Helicopters: Rotary-wing aircraft designed, equipped or modified to

engage targets by employing guided or unguided anti-armor, air-to-surface,

air-to-subsurface, or air-to-air weapons and equipped with an integrated

fire control and aiming system for these weapons, including versions of

these aircraft which perform specialized reconnaissance or electronic

warfare missions.

VI. Warships: Vessels or submarines armed and equipped for military use with a

standard displacement of 750 metric tons or above, and those with a

standard displacement of less than 750 metric tons, equipped for launching

missiles with a range of at least 25 kilometers or torpedoes with a similar

range.

VII. Missiles and Missile Launchers: (a) Guided or unguided rockets, ballistic,

or cruise missiles capable of delivering a warhead or weapon of destruction

to a range of at least 25 kilometers, and means designed or modified

specifically for launching such missiles or rockets, if not covered by

categories I through VI. For the purpose of the Register, this subcategory

includes remotely piloted vehicles with the characteristics for missiles as

defined above but does not include ground-to-air missiles. (b) Man-Portable

Air-Defense Systems (MANPADS).

All Member States, regardless of their size or their prominence, are invited to

participate in the Register. Those member states with no imports and/or exports

to annually report can participate by submitting "NIL" returns. Since its

establishment in 1992, 169 states have participated in the Register by

reporting either on a consistent basis or at least once. In 1993, 95 states

submitted returns; in 1994, 94; in 1995, 98; in 1995, 97; in 1996, 97; in 1997,

94; in 1998, 99; in 1999, 85; in 2000, 100; in 2001, 118; in 2002, 126; in

2003, 123; and in 2004, 115. Submissions in 2005 have not been completed.

Almost all of the major producers, exporters, and importers of major

conventional weapons have participated in the Register on a consistent basis.

It has been estimated that each year the Register is able to capture more than

95% of the global arms trade in the seven agreed categories of conventional

weapons.

In 2004, 9 of the 53 African Member States; 33 of the 53 Asian Member States;

20 of the 22 Eastern European Member States; 21 of the 33 Latin American and

Caribbean Member States; 29 of the 29 Western European and other Member States;

and 2 of the 2 non-Member States had submitted reports to the UN Register.

While regional participation has varied from year to year in some cases,

overall participation has improved, averaging over 120 annual submissions over

the past four years.

The UN Register of Conventional Arms Report is made available to all Member

States, encouraging bilateral and regional dialogues on security concerns. Both

the reporting forms and the data are available at the UN website, http://

disarmament.un.org/cab/register.html.

For further information contact:

Nazir Kamal, PhD,

Department for Disarmament Affairs

United Nations, NY

Tel: (212) 963-6195

Fax: (212) 963-3689

E-Mail: kamaln@un.org

Fact Sheet

Bureau of Arms Control

Washington, DC

September 8, 2005

United Nations Standardized Reporting Instrument for Military Expenditures

On December 12, 1980, the United Nations (UN) General Assembly adopted

resolution 35/142 B, entitled "Reduction of Military Budgets," which introduced

the UN system for standardized reporting of military expenditures. The

resolution recommended that all Member States make use of the reporting

instrument and report annually to the Secretary-General, and requested the

Secretary-General, in turn, to report on the matter to the General Assembly on

an annual basis. The reporting instrument covers military related expenditures

on the operating costs of personnel, operations and maintenance, procurement

and construction, and research and development. It has been in operation since

1981.

The purpose of the UN Standardized Reporting Instrument for Military

Expenditures is to contribute to a broad effort to develop a set of specific

measures for the purpose of facilitating the reduction of military

expenditures. UN General Assembly resolution 58/28 of December 2003 observed

that transparency in military matters is an essential element for building a

climate of trust and confidence between States worldwide. Also, a better flow

of objective information on military matters can help relieve international

tensions and is therefore an important contribution to conflict prevention. The

UN Standardized Reporting Instrument for Military Expenditures has also played

an important role in acting as a model for similar reporting instruments, such

as those used by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and in

South America between Argentina and Chile.

Thus far, 120 states have participated in the military expenditure instrument

on one or more occasions since its inception. On average, more than 70 states

have submitted annual reports during the past four years, representing over 80%

of the global military expenditure. In 2001, the Secretary-General received

reports from 61 states compared to fewer than 40 in 2000. In 2002, 82 states

submitted reports; in 2003, 75 states and in 2004, 79 states. This is a

significant increase considering that only between 20-25 member states of the

United Nations, on average, chose to submit information on their military

spending during the 1980s. Approximately, 30-35 states have participated during

the 1990s. Although there has been some improvement recently, participation by

some regions, most notably Africa remains minimal.

The UN Standardized Reporting Instrument for Military Expenditures originated

in the General Assembly resolution 3093 B (XXVIII) of December 7, 1973.

Following a request from the General Assembly in December 1975, the Secretary

General appointed a Group of Experts to determine the scope, content, and most

appropriate method of assessing military expenditures. The Group developed a

definition of military spending, designed a standardized reporting instrument,

and recommended that Member States begin reporting their military spending on

the basis of a standardized matrix. In 1978, the General Assembly requested the

Secretary-General to carry out a pilot reporting exercise, which was conducted

between 1979 and 1980. Yielding substantive responses from 14 states, the

standardized military expenditure reporting instrument was deemed a success. As

a consequence, the General Assembly approved the standardized instrument in

resolution 35/142 B and recommended that all Member States make use of this

instrument to report their military spending on a yearly basis to the

Secretary-General.

The UN Standardized Reporting Instrument for Military Expenditures is available

to all member states, encouraging bilateral and regional dialogues on security

concerns. Both the reporting forms and the data, as well as other documents,

are available at the UN website, http://disarmament.un.org/cab/milex.html.