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 |  | | |  | | SIPRI Update: Global Security & Arms Control |  | Issues, events and publications in conflict, armaments, arms control and disarmament |  | | |
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October 2011 In this issue: - The UN Security Council: relevance without reform? (essay)
- SIPRI news
- SIPRI events and activities
- SIPRI in the media
- SIPRI staff news
- Recent publications
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| ESSAY |  | |
The UN Security Council: relevance without reform? Ian Anthony
On the occasion of United Nations Day 24 October, it seems only fair to counter some of the more pessimistic assessments of the UN's role in relation to global security. The most recent configurations of the UN Security Council—including many of today's major powers—have demonstrated that the council can still be an effective institution, as well as highlighting the potential benefits of inclusive decision making to the Security Council's work. However, under the current rules, the non-permanent Security Council members must give up their seats at the end of this year or next. Short of reform, how can the Security Council maintain its current level of inclusiveness and relevance?
Continue reading ... | |
| NEWS | | |
Chinese-Russian security and energy relations are crumbling: new SIPRI report China’s rising global influence is straining its strategic partnership with Russia. Decreasing dependence on Russian arms exports and a growing number of alternative energy suppliers mean that China has taken the upper hand in the relationship, according to a new SIPRI Policy Paper, launched 3 October in Stockholm. Read the press release here. Download the Policy Paper here. |  | | |
| NEWS | | |
SIPRI Global Health and Security Programme launches blog Within the past decade there has been a growing recognition of the relationship between foreign policy and health. In this blog the SIPRI Global Health and Security team examines issues at the nexus of international affairs, health and security. They look at how foreign policy and health interact and the impacts they have on one another, providing commentary on current events and health from a security viewpoint. Join the discussion and read the recent entry on non-communicable diseases here. |
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| NEWS | | |
SIPRI Yearbook 2011 summary in Italian Thanks to the generous cooperation of the Torino World Affairs Institute (T.wai), SIPRI is pleased to announce that the first ever SIPRI Yearbook summary in Italian is now available. Download it here.
SIPRI would also like to thank the German Friedrich Ebert Foundation for helping make available printed copies of the 2011 SIPRI Yearbook summary in German. Contact SIPRI Communications Director Stephanie Blenckner for further information.
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| EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES | | |
Upcoming SIPRI events and activities 8 Dec.
Harare | | Dissemination seminar, Promoting the Participation of Women in Peace, Security and Post-conflict Transformation: Assessing the Role of the Women’s Coalition of Zimbabwe
Organized by the Women’s Coalition of Zimbabwe (WCoZ) in partnership with SIPRI, this seminar will share the experiences and lessons learned by the WCoZ on promoting women’s participation in peace and security issues and to contribute to the analysis of the conflict in Zimbabwe and its implications for gender, peace and security. In addition, the seminar will introduce the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Gender Alliance—Peace and Security Cluster. Speakers will include representatives of the SADC Gender Unit, the UN Development Programme and academia. The seminar will be followed by a one-day training on security sector issues. The seminar and training will take place within the framework of the SIPRI-Open Society Institute (OSI) project Africa Security and Governance (ASG). For more information contact Fadzai Chatiza-Traquino or Rebecca Magorokosho at the Zimbabwe Women Lawyers Association and Dr Olawale Ismail or Dr Elisabeth Sköns at SIPRI. Read more about the Africa Security and Governance project here.
| 1 Nov.
Bamako | | Dissemination seminar, The Fight against Terrorism in Mali: Management, Prevention and the Full Mobilization of Civil Society
Organized by the Coalition Nationale de la Société Civile pour la Paix et la Lutte contre la Prolifération des Armes Légères (CONASCIPAL) in partnership with SIPRI, this seminar will include presentations by Dr Mariam D. Maiga, author of the study on the role of civil society in addressing the problem of terrorism in Mali, and Professor Boubacar N’Diaye of the College of Wooster, Ohio, USA, and the African Security Sector Network (ASSN). It will also include representatives of relevant government ministries, academia and Malian civil society organizations (CSOs). The seminar will be followed by a one-day training on security sector issues. The seminar and training will take place within the framework of the SIPRI-OSI ASG project (see above). For more information contact Dr Mariam Maiga at CONASCIPAL and Dr Olawale Ismail or Dr Elisabeth Sköns at SIPRI.
| 27 Oct.
Yaoundé | | Dissemination seminar, The Security Situation in the Border Area of Cameroon, the Central African Republic and Chad: the Phenomenon of Highway Robbery
Organized by the Centre Interdisciplinaire pour le Développement et les Droits Humains (CIPAD) in partnership with SIPRI, this seminar will include presentations by Dr Pascal Touoyem, author of the study on armed highway robbery and Director of CIPAD; Professor Joseph Mboui, Chairman of CIPAD and former vice-president of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Executive Council; Léon-Pascal Seudie, Cameroonian Contrôleur général de police and a former UN Security Council police expert; and others representing academia and civil society. The seminar will be followed by a one-day training on security sector issues. The seminar and training will take place within the framework of the SIPRI-OSI ASG project (see above). For more information contact Dr Pascal Touoyem at CIPAD and Dr Olawale Ismail or Dr Elisabeth Sköns at SIPRI.
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Recent SIPRI events and activities | 18 Oct.
New York | | SIPRI expert presents at United Nations Special Event on Transparency in the Global Arms Trade
SIPRI Senior Researcher Mark Bromley participated in a UN special event entitled Transparency in the Global Arms Trade, which was organized by the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA). At the event, UNODA launched a new and more interactive version of the UN Register on Conventional Arms (UNROCA) website. Mark Bromley gave a short presentation about transparency in international arms transfers. Visit the new UNROCA website here and contact Mark Bromley for more information.
| Mark Bromley (r) addressing
transparency in international
arms transfers at the UN event | 6 Oct.
Berlin | | SIPRI expert addresses meeting of German Council on Foreign Relations non-proliferation task force
SIPRI Senior Researcher Dr Sibylle Bauer, Head of the Export Control project, gave a presentation on 'International trade controls for the purpose of WMD non-proliferation: trends and current challenges of export control' at a meeting of the German Council on Foreign Relations (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Auswärtige Politik, DGAP) Task Force on Non-proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction and Sensitive Technologies. Read more about DGAP's study groups, discussion groups and task forces here and contact Dr Sibylle Bauer for more information.
| 4-5 Oct.
Stockholm | | SIPRI hosts workshop on authorized transfers of small arms
The SIPRI Arms Transfers Programme hosted a two-day workshop to discuss the Small Arms Survey methodology for measuring the value of authorized transfers of small arms and light weapons. Participants included researchers from the Small Arms Survey, Omega (UK), the Centre for Land Warfare Studies (India) and the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (Singapore). Contact Dr Paul Holtom for more information.
| 4-5 Oct.
Shkodër,
Albania | | SIPRI expert chairs meeting on risk management for Albanian customs and licensing authorities
SIPRI Researcher Ivana Mićić chaired a meeting on risk management for the Albanian Customs Administration and the Albanian State Export Control Authority (Autoriteti i Kontrollit Shtetëror të Eksporteve, AKSHE), organized in the framework of the European Union (EU) programme EU Cooperation in Export Control of Dual-use Goods, which is implemented by the German Federal Office of Economics and Export Control (Bundesamt für Wirtschaft und Ausfuhrkontrolle, BAFA). Read more about the EU cooperation programme here and contact Ivana Mićić for more information.
| | 4 Oct.
Stockholm | | SIPRI meeting with Norwegian Defence Research Establishment
SIPRI Senior Researchers Dr Elisabeth Sköns, Director of the Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme, Dr Susan Jackson, Head of the Arms Production Project, and Dr Sam Perlo-Freeman, Head of the Military Expenditure Project, briefed researchers at the Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (Forsvarets Forskningsinstitutt, FFI) Analysis Division on the research agenda of the SIPRI Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme, and in particular on the military services industry and the economics of armed conflict, with the aim of identifying topics of common interest. Contact Dr Elisabeth Sköns, Dr Susan Jackson or Dr Sam Perlo-Freeman for more information.
| | 29-30 Sep.
Accra | | Africa Security and Governance project meeting on a proposal for a pan-African civil society network
SIPRI and the West African Civil Society Institute (WACSI) organized a meeting of the SIPRI-Open Society Institute project Africa Security and Governance. The purpose of the meeting was to develop and refine a proposal by African civil society organizations (CSOs) participating in the project for a pan-African network of CSOs for capacity building on security sector issues. Contact Dr Olawale Ismail for further information.
| | 28-29 Sep.
Tallinn | | Annual Baltic Conference on Defence
Dr Ian Anthony, Director of the SIPRI Programme on Arms Control, Disarmament and Non-proliferation, participated in the Annual Baltic Conference on Defence. Co-organized by the Estonian Ministry of Defence and the International Centre for Defence Studies in Tallinn, the conference provides a regional forum for debate among officials, academics, analysts and media representatives on defence issues pertinent to the EU and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The theme for this year’s conference was: From the Cold War and Hot Peace to the Long War and Beyond: What Are Our Armed Forces (Good) For? Read more about the Annual Baltic Conference on Defence here.
| | 28 Sep.
Vienna | | SIPRI presents new model end-user certificate at OSCE Forum for Security Cooperation meeting
Dr Paul Holtom, Director of the SIPRI Arms Transfers Programme, participated in a special meeting of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Forum for Security Cooperation dedicated to small arms and light weapons. Dr Holtom presented the template for an end-user certificate for small arms and light weapons, which was developed by the SIPRI Arms Transfers Programme and the OSCE Conflict Prevention Centre. Contact Dr Paul Holtom for more information.
| | 27 Sep.
Beijing | | SIPRI experts make presentations at EU-China energy security workshop
SIPRI Senior Researchers Dr Neil Melvin, Director of the Armed Conflict and Conflict Management Programme, and Dr Mathieu Duchâtel of the China and Global Security Programme gave presentations on Central Asia and EU-China energy relations at the workshop Framing an EU-China Dialogue on Energy Security, organized under the EU's Policy Dialogue Support Facility. Contact Dr Mathieu Duchâtel for further information.
| | | 26-27 Sep. Chaudfontaine, Belgium | | SIPRI expert discusses EU export control Green Paper with Chaudfontaine Group
SIPRI Researcher Ivana Mićić participated in the second meeting of the Chaudfontaine Group, which aimed to gather young European researchers' and experts’ comments on the European Commission's Green Paper on dual-use export controls in the EU. Ivana Mićić also contributed a chapter on Croatia to a newly published book that led on from the Chaudfontaine Group's first meeting, Sensitive Trade: The Perspective of European States, Non-proliferation series vol. 5 (Peter Lang: Sep. 2011). Read more about the Chaudfontaine Group here and contact Ivana Mićić for further information.
| | 26 Sep.
Berlin | | SIPRI expert addresses hearing on disarmament at Bundestag Foreign Affairs Committee
Dr Paul Holtom, Director of the SIPRI Arms Transfers Programme, participated in a public hearing on the topic 'Disarmament as a form of crisis prevention' held by three subcommittees of the German Federal Parliament (Bundestag) Committee on Foreign Affairs: the Subcommittee on Civilian Crisis Prevention and Integrated Conflict Management; the Subcommittee on the United Nations, International Organizations and Globalization; and the Subcommittee on Disarmament, Arms Control and Non-Proliferation. Dr Holtom gave an opening statement on the UN Register of Conventional Arms, arms embargoes and the arms trade treaty. Contact Dr Paul Holtom for more information.
| | 22 Sep.
Berlin | | SIPRI co-organizes Chinese-European expert workshop on Pakistan
SIPRI’s China and Global Security Programme and the Friedrich Ebert Foundation jointly organized the Chinese-European Expert Workshop: Pakistan—at the Crossroads of Common Interest. The workshop brought together Chinese and European experts and decision makers dealing with Pakistan and focused on the constellation of security actors in Pakistan, regional implications of an unstable Pakistan (particularly for Afghanistan), and Chinese and European approaches to the situation. Contact SIPRI Senior Researcher Bernt Berger for further information.
| | 20 Sep.
Brussels | | SIPRI expert addresses 2011 Dual-use Exporter Conference
SIPRI Senior Researcher Dr Sibylle Bauer participated in the 2011 Dual-use Exporter Conference organized by the European Commission Directorate General for Trade. She gave comments on the European Commission's Green Paper on dual-use export controls in the EU, introducing a general discussion. Read more about the conference here and contact Dr Sibylle Bauer for further information. | | | |
| MEDIA | | |
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| SIPRI STAFF NEWS | | |
No current vacancies or staff news.
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| PUBLICATIONS | | |
Recent publications | | SIPRI Policy Paper
China's Energy and Security Relations with Russia: Hopes, Frustrations and Uncertainties
Linda Jakobson, Paul Holtom, Dean Knox and Jingchao Peng
The leaders of China and Russia like to speak in public of the strategic partnership between the two countries, based on mutual interests and trust. In reality, the two cornerstones of the relationship—arms sales and energy cooperation—are crumbling. China has not placed a significant order for Russian arms since 2005 and buys only a fraction of its energy imports from Russia. Download the Policy Paper here. | | | | |  | | SIPRI Background Paper
Israeli arms transfers to sub-Saharan Africa
Siemon T. Wezeman
Israel accounted for less than 1 per cent of transfers of major weapons to sub-Saharan Africa for the period 2006–10. Deliveries consisted mainly of small numbers of artillery, unmanned aerial vehicles, armoured vehicles and patrol craft. However, in addition to major weapons, Israel also supplied small arms and light weapons, military electronics and training to several countries in the region. Israeli weapons, trainers and brokers have been observed in numerous African trouble spots and may play a bigger role than their numbers imply. Download the Background Paper here. | | | | |  | | SIPRI Insights on Peace and Security
New Social Media and Conflict in Kyrgyzstan
Neil Melvin and Tolkun Umaraliev
During 2010 Kyrgyzstan experienced a conflict that took the country to the brink of civil war. This paper examines the complex and shifting role of new media such as blogs, social networking sites and multimedia platforms during the events of 2010, focusing on the period from the bloody overthrow of President Kurmanbek Bakiyev in April to the ethnic violence in the south of the country in June. The authors highlight specific social, economic, political and technical factors as shaping the influence of new media in situations of conflict. Read more here. | | | | | | | SIPRI Yearbook 2011: Armaments, Disarmament and International Security
The 42nd edition of the SIPRI Yearbook includes coverage of developments during 2010 in major armed conflicts, multilateral peace operations, military expenditure, arms production, international arms transfers, world nuclear forces and fissile material stocks, nuclear arms control and non-proliferation, reduction of security threats from chemical and biological materials, conventional arms control, controls on security-related international transfers and multilateral arms embargoes. Read more here. To order a copy, click here. | | | | |  | | SIPRI Policy Paper
Implementing an Arms Trade Treaty: Lessons on Reporting and Monitoring from Existing Mechanisms
Paul Holtom and Mark Bromley
This Policy Paper provides the first comprehensive overview of existing UN instruments that require states to report on their arms transfers, transfer controls and enforcement measures. It outlines the types of information required to assess compliance with a future arms trade treaty (ATT), extracts lessons learned from the existing instruments and identifies areas of duplication. This report seeks to lay the foundation for a relevant and robust ATT reporting mechanism. This paper, along with the two Background Papers below, was launched at an event at the Third Session of the Preparatory Committee for the UN Conference on the Arms Trade Treaty. Download the Policy Paper here. | | | | |  | | SIPRI Background Paper
Transit and trans-shipment controls in an arms trade treaty
Paul Holtom and Mark Bromley
A large proportion of arms transfers transit through third countries. Therefore transit controls provide opportunities to strengthen state control at a stage when arms shipments are particularly vulnerable to diversion to illicit markets. This Background Paper provides an overview of existing international and regional agreements and best practices for controls on transit and trans-shipment. It discusses national implementation and enforcement of transit controls, paying particular attention to licensing and authorization, record keeping and information sharing as areas where an arms trade treaty could contribute to enhancing transit controls and their enforcement. Download the Background Paper here. | | | | |  | | SIPRI Background Paper
Import controls and an arms trade treaty
Paul Holtom and Mark Bromley
Import controls represent a vital tool for helping to prevent cases of illicit diversion. They can also enable importer countries to play their part in preventing arms from being used to fuel conflicts or facilitate human rights abuses. This Background Paper provides an overview of existing international and regional agreements and best practices for controls on arms imports. It discusses national implementation and enforcement of import controls, paying particular attention to licensing procedures, customs controls and the production and issuing of end-user certificates and other similar documentation. Download the Background Paper here. | | | | |  | | SIPRI Policy Paper
Conflict Minerals in the Democratic Republic of the Congo: Aligning Trade and Security Interventions
Ruben de Koning
Mineral resources have played a crucial role in fuelling protracted armed conflict in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). This new SIPRI Policy Paper examines the the prospects for and interactions between various trade- and security-related initiatives that are aimed at demilitarizing the supply chains of key minerals. It also describes the changing context in which such initiatives operate. Finally, it offers policy recommendations for how the Congolese Government and international actors can coordinate and strengthen their responses in order to break resource–conflict links in eastern DRC. Download the Policy Paper here. | | | | |  | | SIPRI Monograph
Governing the Bomb: Civilian Control and Democratic Accountability of Nuclear Weapons
edited by Hans Born, Bates Gill and Heiner Hänggi
ISBN 978-0-19-958990-6
With a special emphasis on civilian control and democratic accountability, Governing the Bomb seeks to illuminate the structures and processes of nuclear weapon governance of eight nuclear-armed states: the USA, Russia, the UK, France and China as well as Israel, India and Pakistan. It examines the theoretical as well as practical functions and structures of those who possess the power to make nuclear decisions and those who have the practical means and physical opportunity to execute those decisions. Read more and order the book here. | | |
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© SIPRI 2011. ISSN 1654-8264. Contact SIPRI by email: sipri@sipri.org; telephone: +46 8/655 97 00; fax: +46 8/655 97 33;
or post: SIPRI, Signalistgatan 9, SE-169 70 Solna, Sweden, or visit us online at www.sipri.org
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