Sweden has joined the growing number of States to go on record and confirm that they will be signing the Arms Trade Treaty on 3 June as part of the historic signing ceremony at United Nations Headquarters.
Sweden’s announcement comes days after the European Council proposed a Council decision authorizing all European Union Member States to sign the Treaty. Sweden’s announcement is expected to be the first of many for the EU with additional announcements expected as soon as the end of this week.
The Arms Trade Treaty has been widely supported within Sweden with backing from all eight political parties including 57 Members of Parliament who signed the Control Arms Parliamentarian Declaration on the ATT. During negotiations Ambassador Paul Beijer, who will be signing on behalf of the Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was a strong advocate of an effective Arms Trade Treaty.
“We believe that a legally binding, universal instrument aimed at better regulating the legal trade in arms represents an essential step in addressing what can only be describes as one of the most serious challenges facing the global community today.”
– Beijer stated in a speech from the ATT negotiations last July.
Control Arms welcomes Sweden as the first of many European countries to publicly commit to signing the Arms Trade Treaty and looks forward to other countries following suit in the coming weeks.
