Germany Hosts Conference to Engage Industry in Implementation of Obligations under UN Security Council Resolution 1540 (2004), 19-20 November
On 20 November a two-day conference ended in Wiesbaden, Germany, that engaged representatives of various sectors of industry from around the world, along with Government regulators, to consult on ways to enhance the implementation of United Nations Security Council resolution 1540 (2004). Industry has a vital role to play, particularly in supporting the implementation of strategic trade controls and the physical protection of materials that might be diverted for use in the illicit development and production of such weapons and their delivery means.
The conference in Wiesbaden is the fourth such annual conference hosted by Germany since 2012. In 2011, the Security Council, in its resolution 1977 (2011), explicitly encouraged the United Nations Security Council 1540 Committee to draw — among other sources — on relevant expertise of industry. The four conferences constitute what has become known as the Wiesbaden process. In his message to the conference, the Chair of the Committee overseeing the implementation of resolution 1540 (2004), Román Oyarzun Marchesi, said: “[I]ndustry is a key partner in preventing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, as it operates at the forefront of national implementation of resolution 1540 (2004). While Governments have the fundamental responsibility to implement the obligations under resolution 1540 (2004) by establishing national laws and measures, industry is a key actor in implementing the measures.”
The Committee is currently undertaking a comprehensive review of the implementation of resolution 1540 (2004). The deliberations at this conference in Wiesbaden will be an important contribution to this review. One of the outcomes of the conference was that in future years to take a regional approach in engaging industry and Governments. To this end, the representative of the Republic of Korea announced that it would host a conference in 2016 for the Asia Pacific region in the spirit of the Wiesbaden process.
Resolution 1540 (2004) was adopted unanimously on 28 April 2004 by the Security Council, under the United Nations Charter’s Chapter VII. It obliges all States to refrain from providing any form of support to non-State actors attempting to develop, acquire, manufacture, possess, transport, transfer or use nuclear, chemical or biological weapons and their means of delivery. The resolution requires all States to establish domestic controls to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery, including by establishing appropriate controls over related materials.
The 1540 Committee, a subsidiary body of the Security Council, reports to it on implementation of the resolution. On 20 April 2011, the Council adopted resolution 1977 (2011), by which it extended the Committee’s mandate until 2021.
Financial support for the conference was provided by the Governments of the Republic of Korea and the United States. The European Union also provided financial support. The United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs gave organizational support.
Further information is available at the 1540 Committee’s website at http://www.un.org/en/sc/1540/.