Impact of Arms Transfers on Human Rights

A/HRC/RES/59/13View PDF

Who created this mandate?

A document of the Human Rights Council, under agenda item 3Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development, published in 2025.

What other versions does this mandate have?

5 versions · 2016–2025

2025A/HRC/RES/59/13Impact of arms transfers on human rightsLatestCompare with previous version
2023A/HRC/RES/53/15Impact of arms transfers on human rightsCompare with previous version
2021A/HRC/RES/47/17Impact of arms transfers on human rightsCompare with previous version
2019A/HRC/RES/41/20Impact of arms transfers on human rightsCompare with previous version
2016A/HRC/RES/32/12Impact of arms transfers on human rights

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Who cites this mandate in the budget?

1 entity

Extracted automatically from each entity’s budget submission.

What subjects does this mandate have?

3 topics

Arms Transfers Crime Prevention Human Rights

What does this mandate say?

10 operative paragraphs

Reaffirms the need to ensure the prevention and cessation of all violations of international law, including violations and abuses of international human rights law and all violations of international humanitarian law that may result from arms transfers, in particular the diversion of arms and unregulated or illicit arms transfers, and to ensure the full respect of obligations under applicable international legal frameworks;

Expresses its deep concern at the fact that the diversion of arms and unregulated or illicit arms transfers continue to contribute to seriously undermining the human rights of individuals, especially women, children, youth, particularly those recruited as child soldiers, older persons, persons with disabilities and persons in vulnerable, marginalized, conflict or crime-related situations;

Notes with concern that the diversion of arms and unregulated or illicit arms transfers have a severely negative impact on the full enjoyment of all human rights of all people, in particular women, children, youth, and persons in vulnerable situations, and that lack of transparency and access to information on arms transfers may exacerbate that negative impact and may increase the risk of corruption involving both the public and the private sectors;

Urges all States to refrain from transferring arms when they assess, in accordance with applicable domestic laws, regulations and procedures, international obligations and other commitments, including exercising due diligence, that there is a clear risk that such arms might be used to commit or facilitate serious violations or abuses of international human rights law or serious violations of international humanitarian law;

Calls upon States to implement, as appropriate, the recommendations contained in the aforementioned reports of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, and to establish a comprehensive approach for safeguarding human rights from the negative impact of the uncontrolled proliferation of arms;

Also calls upon States to consider adopting appropriate measures to enable the tracing of arms in their production, sale and transfer, including by requiring human rights due diligence, in order to avoid risks of diversion of arms, unregulated or illicit arms transfers or illicit arms trafficking;

Requests the Office of the High Commissioner to prepare, in consultation with States, United Nations agencies and other relevant stakeholders, a study on the role of States and the private sector in preventing, addressing and mitigating the negative human rights impact of arms transfers, particularly in relation to identifying practical measures and good practices adopted, and steps taken, by States to prevent unlawful arms transfers by third parties, including the regulation of the arms sector, exercise of control over transit and trans-shipment of arms, and the investigation, prosecution and punishment of conduct related to arms exports prohibited by international law, and to present the study to the Human Rights Council at its sixty-sixth session;

Also requests the Office of the High Commissioner to organize a full-day intersessional workshop, in virtual format only, to inform the preparation of the aforementioned study, to be held before the sixty-fourth session of the Human Rights Council and open to the participation of States, relevant treaty bodies and mandate holders, members of academia, civil society and other relevant stakeholders;

Invites all relevant special procedures, commissions of inquiry and other relevant mechanisms of the Human Rights Council and human rights treaty bodies to bear the present resolution in mind within the framework of their respective mandates;

Decides to remain seized of this issue.

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