UN CONFERENCE ON ‘ARMS CONTROL, DISARMAMENT AND THEIR FUTURE’ TO CONVENE IN OSAKA, JAPAN, 19 - 22 AUGUST

UN CONFERENCE ON ARMS CONTROL, DISARMAMENT AND THEIR FUTURE

TO CONVENE IN OSAKA, JAPAN, 19 - 22 AUGUST

NEW YORK, 14 August (Department for Disarmament Affairs) – A United Nations Conference on Disarmament Issues will be held from 19 to 22 August 2003 in Osaka, Japan, to discuss the future of arms control and disarmament.  In close cooperation with the Government of Japan and Osaka City, the Conference is organized by the Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Asia and the Pacific of the Department for Disarmament Affairs.

The Conference will discuss the following topics:  current international security situation, including the role of the United Nations and the threat of terrorism; weapons of mass destruction in the light of current challenges to multilateral non-proliferation and disarmament norms; nuclear-weapon-free zones; and how to overcome the current deadlock in the Conference on Disarmament.

The Conference will also focus on issues such as small arms and light weapons; transparency in armaments; gender perspectives in disarmament; and the need to promote a shift from a culture of violence to a culture of peace.

Approximately 50 representatives from governments, academic and research institutes and non-governmental organizations will attend the Conference in their personal capacity.

The Conference is financed through voluntary contributions made to the Regional Centre by the Government of Japan and Osaka City.  

For further information, contact:  Tsutomu Ishiguri, Director of the Regional Centre, 2 UN Plaza (Room DC2-0560), New York, NY 10017; tel.:  (212) 963-7272; fax:  212 963-4989.

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*    Reissued for technical reasons.

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