Rappresentanza Permanente d’Italia presso la Conferenza del Disarmo Ginevra

Main Statements

The Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) is the first global legally binding instrument setting out common criteria for the authorization (or prohibition) of transfers of conventional arms. Adopted by vote by the UN General Assembly on 2 April 2013, it entered into force on 24 December 2014, three months after achieving the 50 required ratifications in an exceptionally swift process. To date, the Treaty has 116 States Parties and 26 signatories.

The ATT, which is the first treaty of its kind, has two main objectives: to regulate or improve the regulation on the trade of conventional weapons and to prevent/suppress their illicit trafficking, in order to contribute to international security, reduce human suffering and promote responsible actions in this area by States.

The Treaty applies to eight categories of conventional weapons, reflecting those of the United Nations Register of Conventional Weapons, as well as related parts and ammunition, including small arms and light weapons. Its “core” provisions are contained in Articles 6 and 7:

Article 6 sets out cases in which arms transfers are prohibited (e.g. when in violation of UN Security Council sanctions regimes such as embargoes, or when the transferred arms could be used to commit acts of genocide, crimes against humanity or serious violations of the 1949 Geneva Conventions).
Art. VII lays out criteria that States Parties must consider when deciding on arms export authorizations. In particular, States must deny authorization if the export could lead or facilitate:

– serious violations of international humanitarian law;

– serious violations of international human rights law;

– acts constituting offences under international conventions on terrorism;

– acts constituting offences under international conventions on transnational organized crime.

When deciding on arms exports, each State Party must also consider the risk that the transferred weapons could be used to commit or facilitate gender-based violence or violence against women and children.

While less detailed in scope, the ATT also includes provisions on the control of weapons imports, transits/trans-shipment, and brokering activities. A robust article provides for measures aimed at preventing, identifying and adressing the diversion of arms from the legal to the illicit market, highliting the importance of nformation exchange and international cooperation.

Other provisions of the Treaty relate to record-keeping (Art. XII), annual national reporting (Art. XIII), and international cooperation and assistance (Art. XV-XVI). From the institutional point of view, the ATT establishes a Conference of States Parties (CSP) as the primary decision-making body, responsible for reviewing and assessing progress in implementation, as well as a Secretariat. Following the first Conference of the States Parties, held in Cancún (Mexico) in August 2015, the Secretariat was established in Geneva.

From 19 to 23 August 2024, under the Romanian Presidency, the Tenth Conference of States Parties (CSP10) followed the traditional agenda of sessions dedicated to the effective implementation of the Treaty, its universalisation, transparency and reporting, financial and administrative matters.

The meeting was of particular importance, marking the tenth anniversary of the Treaty’s entry into force (24 December 2024) and representing an opportunity to review the implementation of provisions, the progress achieved and the challenges ahead. These reflections were primarily collected in a Political Declaration presented by the United Kingdom and endorsed by 73 countries, including Italy. The Declaration recognizes the Treaty as a key instrument of the international security architecture, thanks to its role in preventing transfers of conventional arms that violate international law – including international humanitarian law – reducing human suffering, and promoting cooperation, transparency and responsible State action in the international arms trade. The Declaration also reiterates the importance of strengthening the universalization process and the application of the provisions of the Treaty on transparency and reporting, providing support to the national capacities of the States Parties through the Voluntary Trust Fund (VTF). Finally, the Declaration acknowledges the benefits of defining a strategic direction for the next decade, including shared objectives and priority actions.

In 2025, Argentina’s Presidency of the Eleventh Conference of the States Parties saw the presentation and inclusion of additional initiatives aimed at strengthening the implementation of the ATT and its universalization in the final report. The United Kingdom, following up on the aforementioned Political Declaration, presented a five-year strategy to revitalize the Treaty, to be approved at CSP12. Such an ATT strategy, in line with other approaches under other disarmament instruments, would appropriately define monitoring measures across thematic and technical areas. At the implementation level, it would assess the impact of decisions within national control systems and efforts to counter diversion. Universalization would be assessed by looking at the rate and scope of Treaty ratifications. Transparency would evaluate the frequency, regularity, and quality of submitted reports. The United Kingdom has also formalized the “Friends of the ATT” initiative, a voluntary and informal forum for discussion, complementary to the official ATT structures, aimed at fostering dialogue and transregional cooperation. Italy joined this initiative along with a group of countries. Finally, another noteworthy initiative is Panama’s proposal to enhance youth engagement in achieving the Treaty’s objectives.

The issues addressed under the ATT are of paramount importance for international peace and security, especially given that roughly a decade afterthe Treaty’s entry into force, global military expenditures have increased by 19% (2013-2022). According to SIPRI data, global defense spending reached USD 2.718 trillion, marking the tenth consecutive year of growth and a 37% increase from 2015. The 9.4% year-on-year increase was the largest since at least 1998.

Working Groups

In addition to the annual Conference, the ATT traditionally organizes its work through Working Groups that meet periodically and focus on certain thematic areas:

Effective Treaty Implementation (WGETI),
Universalisation (WGTU),
Transparency and Reporting (WGTR).

During the last meetings of 2025, the WGETI met for the second time since the reconfiguration of its structure and focus, approved at CSP9. This reconfiguration shifted from a conceptual approach to practical examples addressed through three sub-groups dedicated respectively to the implementation of Art. VI & VII; exchange of national implementation practices; current and emerging issues. Regarding the WGTR, the Group confirmed the decline in the number of annual reports submitted by States Parties, a concerning gap that undermines one of the most significant obligations under the Treaty. According to the updates provided by the Secretariat in 2025 for the 2024 reporting cycle, despite a slight increase in the number of reports (72) compared to 2023 (64), concern remains over the downward trend that began already as early as 2015. Among the challenges highlighted by States Parties were the lack of human and financial resources and the administrative burdens, in particular the ability to fill in relevant documents and the disaggregation of information.

Finally, on the topic of universalization, appreciation was reiterated for the “regional champions” initiative launched originally in 2023 as a tool for sharing, exchanging information, and promoting assistance initiatives to encourage universalization of the Treaty. The Argentine Presidency presented a dedicated working paper on this topic.

Italian participation in the ATT

Italy was the first EU country to ratify the ATT (September 2013), consider this Treaty as a fundamental instrument not only in regulating the arms trade, but also in promoting respect for human rights. For Italy, the criteria in Art. VII are of paramount importance. The provisions relating to the prevention of gender-based violence constitute an initial incorporation of the concept of human security into the broader context of global security. More generally, the Treaty introduces important control and transparency measures in the arms trade, highlighting the social, humanitarian, economic, and security consequences of illicit and irresponsible arms transfers.

Italy has played a very active role troughout the diplomatic process leading to the adoption of the Treaty, emphasizing from the outset the need for a legally binding global instrument that, while respecting the legitimate right to self-defence and the provisions of the UN Charter, would create obligations able to guarantee that conventional arms exports decisions would be taken legally and responsibly. For Italy, the ATT is grounded on the strong belief that an unregulated or irresponsible arms trade foster armed conflicts, terrorism and organized crime; result in human rights and international humanitarian law violations; destabilize countries and regions, and create serious obstacles to economic and social development.

Main Statements

Eleventh Conference of States Parties (CSP) – Geneva, 25-29 August 2025

Amb. Leonardo Bencini