New York, March 22, 2018. At her statement before the Preparatory Committee for the Review Conference on the Program of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects, a review of Item 7 a. iii Follow-up to the Review Conference of the Program of Action (PoA), Lillianne Sánchez Rodríguez, Second Secretary of the Permanent Mission of Cuba to the United Nations, positively evaluated the follow-up mechanism of the Review Conferences of the Program of Action which, in her opinion, has enabled a comprehensive and balanced review on the progress made in the implementation of said Program and has ensured its coherence, continuity and comprehensiveness.
Regarding the proposals to introduce modifications to this mechanism, the Cuban diplomat stressed the importance of ensuring that they do not affect the comprehensive and balanced follow-up on the Program of Action, the mandate of the Review Conferences, or the participation of all States, on equal terms, in the new meetings proposed to address identified topics of interest. It is of great importance to preserve the inclusiveness and transparency of the follow-up mechanism and that this does not result in new commitments and obligations for States, she said.
On behalf of Cuba, Sánchez Rodríguez, called for additional efforts to mobilizing the political will and resources to achieve a better and more effective implementation of the Program of Action and of the International Tracing Instrument.
Permanent Mission of Cuba to the United Nations