India and Israel have voted against a draft resolution on conventional arms control at regional and subregional levels, jointly introduced by Pakistan and Belarus at the United Nations General Assembly.
The resolution, titled General and Complete Disarmament: Conventional Arms Control at the Regional and Subregional Levels, was approved by the General Assembly’s First Committee on Monday, with 180 votes in favour, two against and no abstentions. India and Israel were the only countries to oppose it.
Explaining India’s vote, Anmol Sher Bedi, First Secretary at India’s Permanent Mission to the UN, said conventional arms control was a global issue and should not be pursued primarily through regional and subregional arrangements.
“We are not fully convinced that it should be pursued primarily in regional and sub-regional contexts,” Bedi said.
He added that India’s opposition was consistent with its previous position on the issue.
India Questions Need for Further UN Deliberations
India also objected to the resolution’s request that the UN Disarmament Commission consider formulating principles that could serve as a framework for regional agreements on conventional arms control.
Bedi pointed out that the commission had already adopted guidelines and recommendations on regional disarmament in 1993, conventional arms control and disarmament in 1999, and practical confidence-building measures concerning conventional weapons in 2017.
“That makes three consensus outcomes on this very subject in the very body now being asked to start from scratch,” he said.
“We fail to understand why a subject already deliberated at length needs another round of deliberation unless the aim is to keep the UN disarmament machinery busy,” he added.
India Says Security Concerns Extend Beyond Regional Borders
New Delhi also questioned the resolution’s emphasis on maintaining a balance in defence capabilities within particular regions or subregions.
“This assumes that the security concerns of States politely stop at their regional borders. They do not,” Bedi said.
He argued that countries’ security concerns extended beyond narrowly defined regional boundaries and that maintaining a military balance within a particular region or subregion was unrealistic.
The resolution argues that conventional arms control should primarily be pursued through regional and subregional arrangements because many threats to peace and security in the post-Cold War era arise between countries located in the same region.
It also calls for agreements that strengthen regional peace and security while maintaining military forces and armaments at the lowest possible levels.
India Opposes Reference to South Asian Arms Control Proposals
India separately voted against a paragraph referring to conventional arms control proposals made in the context of South Asia.
The paragraph took note of initiatives in different regions, including consultations among some Latin American countries and proposals for conventional arms control in South Asia. It also recognised the relevance of conventional arms control to regional security.
The resolution further states that militarily significant countries and those with larger military capabilities have a special responsibility to promote agreements aimed at strengthening regional peace and security.
The draft was approved by the First Committee, which deals with disarmament and international security matters. Its adoption by the committee is part of the UN General Assembly’s consideration of the resolution.
