05 July 2001

Fact Sheet: State Department on OAS Firearms Convention

The U.S. government supports the Inter-American Convention Against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives, and other Related Materials adopted by the Organization of American States (OAS) November 14, 1997. "As of July 1, 2001, 12 OAS member states have ratified the Convention (Bahamas, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, and Peru), and 33 of the 34 OAS member states (including the United States) have signed," according to a State Department fact sheet.

Following is the text of the fact sheet, which was released July 5:

Fact Sheet
U.S. Department of State
Bureau of Political-Military Affairs
Washington, D.C.
July 5, 2001
The Inter-American Convention Against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives, and Other Related Materials

The Organization of American States (OAS) on November 14, 1997, adopted the Inter-American Convention Against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives, and other Related Materials ("the Convention"). This is the first international treaty designed to prevent, combat, and eradicate illegal transnational trafficking in firearms, ammunition, and explosives. As of July 1, 2001, 12 OAS member states have ratified the Convention (Bahamas, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, and Peru), and 33 of the 34 OAS member states (including the United States) have signed. On June 8, 1998, the Convention was submitted to the U.S. Senate for its advice and consent to ratification.

The Convention will make the citizens of the hemisphere safer by helping to shut down the illicit transnational arms market that fuels the violence associated with drug trafficking, terrorism, and international organized crime. Initially proposed by the Government of Mexico and negotiated in seven months, the Convention is an outstanding example of the contribution that the OAS is making to the security of the hemisphere.

While strengthening our ability to eradicate illicit arms trafficking, this agreement protects the legal trade in firearms, does not purport to regulate purely domestic trade, and does not discourage or diminish the lawful ownership and use of firearms.

Key Provisions of the Convention:

• Export, Import, and Transit Licenses. To help ensure that arms are transferred only to legitimate users, parties to the Convention are required to establish or maintain an effective licensing or authorization system for the export, import, and transit of firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other related materials. States may not permit firearms to be exported or transited across their borders without proper licensing from the receiving and in-transit countries.

• Marking of Firearms. To improve the ability to track illegal firearms, parties to the Convention are obligated to require, at the time of manufacture, the marking of firearms with the name of manufacturer, place of manufacture, and serial number. Similar markings are required for imported firearms.

• Criminalization of Illicit Arms Production and Sales. Parties that have not already done so are required to adopt laws and regulations criminalizing the illicit manufacture of and trafficking in firearms, ammunition, explosives, and related materials.

• Information Exchange. Consistent with their national laws, parties will share information on legislative practices and other national measures to combat illicit trafficking; techniques used to combat money laundering related to illicit transfers; routes customarily used by criminal organizations engaged in illicit trafficking; and the means of concealment used and ways of detecting them.

• International Coordination. Parties agree to cooperate with one another in the effort to eradicate arms trafficking through a single point of contact that will act as the formal liaison among states.

• Law Enforcement Cooperation. The treaty provides for cooperation between the parties in various fields of law enforcement such as extradition, mutual legal assistance, confiscation, and forfeiture.

• Technical Assistance and Training. States agree to cooperate to better ensure adequate training in such areas as identification and tracing; intelligence gathering; and detection methods and search protocols at borders.