I. The Arms Trade Treaty

Chapter:

14. Dual-use and arms trade controls

Source:

SIPRI Yearbook 2020

Author(s):

Mark Bromley

The 2013 Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) is the first legally binding international agreement to establish standards for regulating the international trade in conventional arms and preventing illicit arms transfers.¹ As of 31 December 2019, 105 states were party to the ATT and 33 had signed but not yet ratified it.² There were five new ATT states parties in 2019—Botswana, Canada, Lebanon, Maldives and Palau—a decrease compared to 2018 when six states ratified the treaty.³ During 2019, President Donald J. Trump announced that the United States would withdraw its signature from the ATT.⁴ In contrast, China—which has been sceptical of the ATT and has not signed it—announced its intention to join the treaty.⁵