Arms Control in the Time of COVID-19

As the world reels from the coronavirus outbreak in the first half of 2020, the global community is being forced to reckon with the consequences of prioritizing short term profits over long term investments, in areas such as healthcare and education.

For decades, governments around the world have prioritized militarization in the name of national security and profited from the multi-billion dollar global arms trade. Human security – one of the fundamental pillars of a healthy, functioning society – has been largely neglected, despite warnings by UN bodies, NGOs, and research institutions of the changing nature of international challenges and threats. The negative consequences of this misalignment in priorities is being laid bare today, as highly militarized nations that continue to measure their security by the size of their arms supplies, now struggle to adequately respond to the global health crisis posed by COVID-19.

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Resources on Disarmament and Arms Control in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic

  

Arms exports and arms industry during the COVID-19 pandemic 

NGOs, research institutions, politicians, celebrities, the UN, and countless others are calling for governments worldwide to revisit longstanding practices of filling weapons caches at the expense of human security. They are urging to reprioritize spending in line with current and future security challenges and threats to health and wellbeing.

Yet, business continues as usual with a number of governments declaring the arms industry as an “essential” sector:

    • the Indian government decided to proceed with an arms deal with Israel, worth a $116 million, despite shortages of masks and protective equipment   
    • Canada announced on April 9 that it will resume a $10 billion arms export deal with Saudi Arabia. The agreement came under review following the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. 
    • Germany announced a €43.5 million increase in its arms sales in the first three months of 2020, compared to the same period last year. This increase is due to an arms agreement with Egypt, a member of the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, worth €290 million.

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Resources on Arms Exports/ Industry in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic

General:

Belgium: 

Canada: 

France:

Germany: 

Italy: 

Philippines:

USA: 

UK:

 

What we can do

As an individual:

Support the UN Secretary General’s online petition for a global ceasefire
As an organization: 
Join the global ceasefire campaign
Sign the Open Letter on COVID-19 and Humanitarian Disarmament

 Other initiatives: 

 

Other Resource Pages:

Virtual Meetings and Webinars

Statements 

In the News

Resources on Conflict in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Publications:

General News and Blogs:

 

Afghanistan:

Cameroon:

Libya: 

Middle East and North Africa: 

Myanmar:

South Sudan

Somalia:

Syria:

Thailand:

Ukraine: 

West Africa: 

Yemen:

Coronavirus and Human Rights:

 

Conflict and Armed Violence in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic

As ever, irresponsible arms transfers and diversion of arms fuel conflicts and armed violence and enable terrorism and organized crime. Unregulated arms deals perpetuate conflict, facilitate human rights violations and abuses, exacerbate refugee crises and hamper development efforts. However, when coupled with the global health crisis, unchecked arms transfers to conflict zones and beyond result in even more devastating consequences.

In Yemen for instance, airstrikes carried out by the Saudi-led coalition and the use of hospitals for military purposes by the Houthi forces resulted in a limited number of functioning healthcare facilities and severe shortages of medical supplies. Additionally, high levels of malnutrition and low levels of immunity due to outbreaks of cholera and diphtheria along with the fact that nearly 18 million people do not have access to clean water, are just a few indicators that a widespread COVID-19 outbreak would have a particularly devastating impact on Yemeni civilians.

That is why on 17 April, UNICEF Executive Director, Henrietta Fore, warned states that for the 250 million children around the world living in the “waking nightmare [of conflicts] a ceasefire could mean the difference between life and death.” She called on warring parties to make and respect ceasefire agreements, stressing that “a global ceasefire would serve as a model of cooperation and solidarity to push back against COVID-19“. 

Millions of people have now supported the UN Secretary General’s call for a global ceasefire, with over 2.2 million signing an online petition. Similarly, in his call for peace, Pope Francis reminded states that

“[T]his is not a time for continuing to manufacture and deal in arms, spending vast amounts of money that ought to be used to care for others and save lives.”

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Articles and Resources on Calls for Ceasefire in the Context of the Coronavirus Pandemic

Press Releases:

 

Articles:

This webpage will stay up-to date on the global discourse regarding the deficiencies exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, primarily the impact of investments in militarization and the arms trade on healthcare, education and sustainable development.

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