Mr. Chairman,
We fully support the statement delivered by Indonesia on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement.
While 700 million people in the world are extremely poor; 815 million human beings suffer from chronic hunger; 5 million children die in one year from preventable or curable diseases and 758 million adults are illiterate; the major arms producers develop increasingly sophisticated and deadly conventional weapons, thus raising world military expenditures to 1.7 trillion dollars and undermining international stability, security and peace.
The resources that are now earmarked for war must be devoted to eliminate extreme poverty and hunger.
Double standards in the field of disarmament must also cease. The major producers of conventional weapons with devastating effects, in addition to deepening the marked imbalance in terms of production, possession of and trade in these weapons, seek to prevent developing countries, including through international rules, from procuring and using, as self-defense, certain types of conventional and less sophisticated weapons, including small arms and light weapons. The legitimate right of States to manufacture, import and stockpile conventional weapons to meet their legitimate defense and security needs must be respected, pursuant to Article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations.
Cuba reiterates that highest priority must be given to regulating and limiting the most sophisticated and destructive conventional weapons, which cause the majority of innocent victims in modern wars.
Mr. Chairman,
Cuba accords high priority to the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons and strictly abides by its provisions and those of Annexes I, II (original), III, IV and V, to which our country is a State Party.
We call for the adoption, as soon as practicable, of a Protocol which prohibits lethal autonomous weapons, also called "Killer Robots", before such weapons start to be massively produced and deployed. In like manner, regulations for the use of weapons with some autonomy are required. We call upon to regulate military attack drones, which are causing a high number of civilian casualties.
Mr. Chairman,
Cuba reaffirms that the United Nations Program of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects, adopted by the UN General Assembly, is the principal international benchmark for dealing with illicit trade in small arms and light weapons.
The delicate balance of the Program of Action should not be affected by the promotion of artificial synergies by using other instruments of different nature and scope, which do not enjoy consensus support.
We reiterate that the ambiguities, imbalances and limitations of the Arms Trade Treaty undermine its effectiveness and efficiency. This treaty bestows privileges on conventional arms exporting states, to the detriment of the legitimate interests of the other States, including in terms of defense and national security matters.
The Arms Trade Treaty lays down subjective and easily manipulated parameters for the approval and refusal of arms transfers, and does not unreasonably prohibit the transfer of arms to unauthorized non-state actors, even though they are the main source of illicit trade in arms.
We reiterate that in order to eradicate the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons, we must address and tackle the deep social and economic causes that generate such trade. It is also required that international cooperation and assistance are tailored to the national needs of the State.
Cuba therefore will continue to work actively and constructively for the coming Third Review Conference of the United Nations Program of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons.
Thank you very much.
Permanent Mission of Cuba to the United Nations.