UN negotiations to draft the first international treaty on the multi-billion-dollar arms trade have ended without a deal, with some diplomats blaming the US for the deadlock.
It’s the fault of the United States that we failed
UN chief Ban Ki-moon said on Friday he was “disappointed” that member states failed to clinch an agreement after several years of preparatory work and four weeks of negotiations, calling it a “setback”.
But he vowed “steadfast” commitment to obtaining a “robust” arms trade treaty, noting that countries had agreed to pursue negotiations.
“There is already considerable common ground and states can build on the hard work that has been done during these negotiations,” he added.
Some diplomats said Washington had refused to vote on the proposed text, saying it needed more time before the midnight deadline and was worried about a pushback from the US Congress.
Russia and other countries followed suit.
“It’s the fault of the United States that we failed,” a Western diplomat said, requesting anonymity to speak freely about the subject.
“They derailed the process and we will have to wait for the US presidential elections” in November to get out of the impasse, the diplomat added.
But State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said, in a written statement issued late on Friday, that the US supported a second round of negotiations, conducted on the basis of consensus, on the treaty next year.
Nuland noted that while the illicit trafficking in conventional arms was an important national security concern for the US, Washington did not support a vote at the UN General Assembly on the current text.
“While we sought to conclude this month’s negotiations with a Treaty, more time is a reasonable request for such a complex and critical issue,” the spokeswoman said. “The current text reflects considerable positive progress, but it needs further review and refinement.”
She did not offer specifics, but said the US believes any arms trade treaty “should require states to develop their own national regulations and controls and strengthen the rule of law regarding arms sales”.
In the end, 90 countries signed the text, saying they were “disappointed but... not discouraged” and vowing to soon finalise a treaty based on Moritan’s draft.