EU Statement - ATT 11th Conference of States Parties - Treaty Universalization
EU Statement
Treaty Universalization
Arms Trade Treaty
Eleventh Conference of States Parties
Geneva, 25-29 August 2025
Mr. President,
I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union and its Member States.
The candidate countries North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania, Republic of Moldova[1] and Georgia, as well as the EFTA countries Iceland and Norway, members of the European Economic Area, align themselves with this statement.
Let me start by congratulating The Gambia, Malawi, and Colombia for joining the Treaty since CSP10. While this is evidence of positive dynamics and momentum, significant effort remains necessary to reinvigorate universalization, which over the last few years has slowed down. We encourage signatory States to pursue ratification and national implementation. Countries which play a leading role in the arms trade, whether exporters, importers, or transit countries, are encouraged to join the Treaty. States Parties which are significant exporters of arms are also encouraged to reach out to promote ATT membership among their trade partners, to pursue joint standards of responsible conduct in their shared interest of fighting diversion and misuse of arms.
EU Member States are aware of their responsibilities as global arms trade actors. In recognition of this duty but also in acknowledgement of the strong link between the multilateral approach to conventional non-proliferation and international security, we have supported first the creation of the ATT, and then its implementation and universalization. The EU Outreach Project in support of the ATT has been continuously implemented since 2013, and its fourth iteration started on 28 February to cover the period of 2025-2028. We work with 22 formal partner States, providing support, and a number of other States take part in our activities to learn about the duties and benefits of joining the Treaty. Since CSP10, regional universalization conferences under the project were held in East Africa and Latin America, and several individual outreach activities took place to support the ratification and domestication of the Treaty. The EU understands universalization in a broad sense, meaning not only to expand membership but also to ensure that the Treaty is implemented effectively in States Parties.
In the same vein, another EU outreach programme on the promotion of effective arms export controls, currently under its 7th iteration, covers Eastern and South-Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, Central Asia, North Africa, the Mediterranean, and the Southern neighbourhood of the EU. We believe that a solid national framework for arms export controls will effectively bring States not Parties to the ATT closer to its purpose and objective, and advance universalization of the Treaty.
The EU would like to express appreciation to you, Mr. President, and to Ambassador Rusu of Romania for co-chairing the Working Group on Treaty Universalization, and for your individual outreach efforts. We support the recommendations for the CSP11 outcome document and fully subscribe to the appreciation of regional, multi-dimensional outreach, with appropriate awareness-raising on a political level, the role of regional universalization champions, and visible incentives, including commitment by the ATT community to support future States Parties in the domestication and implementation of the Treaty. Where appropriate, the role of civil society should also be explored and supported. The EU thanks the ATT Secretariat and you, Mr. President, for your joint work on universalization since CSP10. We reaffirm our openness and commitment to cooperate with all relevant stakeholders. Given the regional focus acknowledged by CSP10, we reiterate our call upon States Parties from the Asia-Pacific region to join universalization efforts using their bilateral and regional leverage, and to support the available financial instruments that can facilitate universalization.
A structured approach to universalization should address all aspects and phases of the process. This includes exploring and understanding reasons why a given country has decided to stay out of the ATT, encouraging long-term political will to accede, and committing national resources to promote implementation. This should be followed by guidance on the practicalities of joining and adhering to the Treaty, including through the legal aspects of accession and domestication, and assistance, wherever necessary, in building sustainable capacities for implementation, including in relation to reporting. We know that political outreach has a better chance of succeeding when combined with a clear vision of the benefits of accession, as well as with guidance and assistance, including in setting a multi-year work plan with realistic benchmarks to measure progress. The EU also employs a regional approach, encouraging collective efforts to understand the benefits of joining the Treaty, to overcome potential lack of trust or misunderstandings and to address shared cross-border security challenges. We are successfully developing cooperation with experts from partner countries as trainers for other partner countries, and taking advantage of the unique experience of other actors, inter alia UNIDIR, SIPRI, and the Small Arms Survey, and additional resources made available inter alia through Voluntary Trust Fund.
In this regard, we invite all interested States and other stakeholders to a side-event organised on Wednesday 27 August, during the lunch break, jointly by BAFA and Expertise France on the ATT Outreach Programme - Phase IV. We will be happy to present further details on the project and our achievements.
Thank you, Mr. President.
[1]North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Albania continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.