Renewal of UN Security Council Resolution 1540 Committee Mandate

In April 2004, the UN Security Council adopted UN Security Council Resolution 1540, establishing for the first time binding Chapter VII obligations on all UN member states to develop and enforce appropriate legal and regulatory Measures against the proliferation of WMD. UNSCR 1540, if fully implemented, can help ensure that no State or non- State actor is a source of WMD proliferation. All states have three primary obligations under UNSCR 1540 relating to chemical, nuclear, and biological weapons, and their delivery systems: to refrain from providing support to non-State actors seeking such items; to prohibit non-state actors from engaging in activities including the acquisition and use, as well as attempted acquisition and use of such items; and to prohibit non-State actors from participating in, assisting or financing such activities; and to put in place and enforce effective measures to control these items, as well as related material, in order to prevent their proliferation. If implemented successfully, each state's actions will significantly strengthen international standards relating to the export of such items and support for proliferators (including financing), and ensure that non-state actors, including terrorist and black-market networks, do not gain access to chemical, nuclear or biological weapons, their means of delivery or related materials.

Resolution 1673 (2006), adopted on April 27, renewed the 1540 Committee for two years, and reemphasized the steps each state must take to implement its 1540 obligations. The Security Council requested states to report to the 1540 Committee on steps they have taken or intend to take to implement resolution 1540. Resolution 1673 calls upon states that have not yet presented a report to the Committee to do so without delay and encourages all states that have submitted such reports to provide, at any time or upon the Committee's request, additional information on their implementation of resolution 1540.

The United States has over the course of many years put in place an extensive set of legal and regulatory measures that are responsive to Resolution 1540. The U.S. continues to strengthen its legal and regulatory framework in response to new proliferation challenges. One step taken by the U.S. to fulfill its obligations was the June 2005 issuance of an Executive Order that freezes the U.S. assets of WMD proliferators and their supporters, and prohibits U.S. persons from engaging in transactions with them. Persons that are designated under the Order are effectively denied access to the U.S. financial and commercial systems. The U.S. encourages other governments to create similar authorities to address the actions of persons or entities under their jurisdiction who might be financing or otherwise supporting the activities of known proliferators.

Efforts to ensure that states adopt effective controls and enforcement over items covered by Resolution 1540 are not new. The international community understands the importance of strong and effective laws and enforcement measures on items of proliferation concern. We have made significant strides in elevating awareness about the importance of strong controls and decisive actions that keep deadly technologies out of the wrong hands, yet a clear gap persists between that global consensus about the threat of WMD proliferation and a global willingness to take those decisive, concrete actions. Full implementation of resolution 1540 will help close this gap.

We recognize that many governments might lack the necessary capacity or expertise to assess their ability to implement 1540 and close any identified gaps. The 1540 Committee can help with such assessments and can help countries find the necessary assistance needed to take concrete steps towards implementation. Thus, where appropriate, States should be encouraged to reach out to the Committee for assistance.

The United States is working on its own outreach plan to determine what assistance we can provide to help states undertake full implementation of UNSCR 1540. We encourage other donor governments to do likewise, and we encourage those States not yet meeting the requirements of Resolution 1540 to work with the 1540 Committee, donors and each other to enact and enforce strong export control laws.

The 1540 Committee and its Experts have done much useful work over the past two years, summarized in the report of the Committee distributed by the United Nations on April 25, 2006. This is a significant report that for the first time addresses key actions related to both State and Non- state actors.