Working Group Meetings
| Date | Summary |
|---|---|
| 30 April 2024 |
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| 22 February 2024 |
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| 14 July 2022 |
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| 12 May 2022 |
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| 11 December 2020 |
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| 27 September 2017 |
The Group of Experts and the Office for Disarmament Affairs presented the new Website and highlighted the changes made, and the Members of the Working Group exchanged comments and expressed appreciation for the improvements. Members of the Working Group also exchanged views on the proposed standardized template and decided to continue the discussion by soliciting further inputs from other Members of the Committee and their respective capitals. |
| 28 September 2016 |
The Working Group also discussed ways to improve the 1540 Matrix, in order to better organize information about implementation of resolution 1540 (2004), and further discussed the contents of the 2016 Annual Report of the Working Group to be presented to the Committee. |
| 17 June 2016 |
Based on the understanding that the mandate of the Committee would be further strengthened by increasing cooperation with various international, regional, sub-regional organizations and other inter-governmental institutions (IROs), the Committee Members discussed ways to better facilitate sharing of information, experiences, and lessons learned. The Committee Members noted that by enhancing cooperation, the Committee would gain valuable insights into the common needs and priorities of Member States which would in turn contribute to delivering much needed assistance to the implementation of UNSCR 1540 (2004). Practical suggestions and ideas were discussed, and the Committee decided to engage further into developing strategies to enhance cooperation with the IROs. |
| 6 May 2016 |
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| 23 March 2016 |
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| 2 September 2015 |
With regard to the Comprehensive Review, the members of the Working Group supported the initiative of a Retreat to review results of the matrices; assess status of implementation of the resolution; discuss challenges related to the collection of data; and discuss how to interact with States during the process of updating the matrices. The Working Group received an update by Spain on the efforts undertaken by the Chairman toward universal reporting. As of this date, there are still 18 non-reporting States. With regard to the voluntary National Action Plans, it was noted, that there was a considerable increase since 2013, bringing the total number to 19. The Working Group also agreed on a new deadline for the submission of comments on the matrices by States. |
| 23 July 2015 | The 1540 Committee’s Working Group on Transparency and Media Outreach held an informal meeting on 23 July 2015. Dr. Mark T. Nance, Assistant Professor at the School of Public & International Affairs, North Carolina State University, and Dr. Bryan R. Early, Assistant Professor in the Political Science Department at the University at Albany, State University of New York, delivered presentations on their research in the area of outreach related to resolution 1540. The presentations included topics such as an assessment of various stakeholders' influence on outreach, the catalytic effects of 1540 outreach on other related fields and possible additional actions that could be taken in that regard. The presentations were followed by remarks from the Group of Experts and UNODA. Subsequently, members of the Working Group expressed their views and engaged in discussions with the two Academics. |
| 15 July 2015 | On 15 July 2015, the 1540 Working Groups on Cooperation with International Organizations and on Transparency and Media Outreach held a joint informal meeting focussing on biological security. After opening remarks by the Working Group Coordinators, Mr. Terence Taylor, Coordinator of the Committee's Group of Experts, was invited to make remarks on resolution 1540 obligations and an overview of the status of implementation of measures related to biological security. This was followed by three panels that elaborated on relevant issues in biosecurity followed by questions and comments from working group members. During panel one, entitled "The Biological Weapons Convention (BWC)", Mr. Franz Kolar, UN Office for Disarmament Affairs, presented an overview of the history and current status of the convention, the tasks of the Implementation Support Unit for the BWC and UNODA activities in support of the BWC. Panel two, "The Biological Risk Environment – Natural, Accidental and Deliberate Misuse", comprised three speakers. Dr. Cathy Roth from the World Health Organization (WHO) elaborated on her organization's approach to biological risks and the need to respond to a variety of threats by building capacity on the community, national and global levels, including through effective communication and appropriate analysis and assessment measures. Dr. Keith Hamilton, International Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), emphasised that the deliberate use of animal pathogens could have a huge economic impact. He further noted, that in many countries the level of preparedness for outbreaks was insufficient and the OIE would offer tools that could strengthen the response to biological threats. The representative of the International Police Organization (INTERPOL), Ms. Rebecca Boil, presented the work of her organization related to biological security that concentrates, among other measures, on reducing accessibility to agents, training and capacity building in the area of law enforcement. Panel three addressed the role of Academia and Industry in the field of biological security. Mr. Ben Fontes, International Federation of Biosafety Associations (IFBA) and Professor Iqbal Parker, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), elaborated on "Approaches to Biological Safety and Security, the Human Factor, Regulation, Rapid Advances and the role of Codes of Conduct". |
| 1 July 2015 | On 1 July 2015, the 1540 Working Groups on Transparency and Media Outreach and on Assistance held a joint informal meeting. During the first part of the meeting, chaired by the Coordinator of Working Group IV, Ms. Paddy Torsney, Permanent Observer of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) to the United Nations, briefed the working group on activities of the IPU in areas related to peace and security, e.g. the contribution of parliaments towards a nuclear-weapon-free world and activities related to UN Security Council Resolution 1540, such as a regional workshop for parliamentarians of the African region, planned to be organized by the IPU in Algeria in November 2015 with the support of UNODA. The presentation was followed by remarks from the Group of Experts and an exchange of views on the importance of contributions to the work of the Committee by parliamentarians. Subsequently, Working Group II convened its meeting and received a briefing by Mr. Brian Finlay, Vice President and Ms. Debra Decker, Senior Advisor, both from The Stimson Center, a non-profit international security think-tank. They delivered a presentation entitled “Strengthening 1540 Assistance & Outreach: Leveraging Industry and Civil Society”, highlighting their activities and sharing related information. Furthermore, they introduced proposals for future projects on industry outreach, legislative assistance and academic outreach for the 2016 Comprehensive Review, followed by a question and answer session and remarks by working group members. |
| 29 June 2015 | The 1540 Committee’s Working Group on Transparency and Media Outreach held an informal meeting on 29 June 2015. Mr. Peter Winkler from the Permanent Mission of Germany to the United Nations delivered a presentation on the “Wiesbaden Process”, a series of conferences initiated and hosted by Germany in cooperation with the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs specifically designed to offer a cooperative forum for relevant industries, associations and companies to share their experiences and effective practices. So far, three conferences have been held on an annual basis since 2012. The fourth such event will take place in Wiesbaden, Germany from 19-20 November 2015 and contribute to the Comprehensive Review of the status of implementation of resolution 1540, due to be completed before the end of December 2016. This was followed by 1540 Experts' and Working Group members' remarks on the importance of engaging industry in issues related to the resolution and a brief overview of past outreach activities by UNODA in that regard. |
| 9 April 2015 | At the informal meeting of the Working Group on Cooperation with International Organizations, the Coordinator of the Group of experts elaborated on the non-paper “An Approach to Strategic Goals and Specific Objectives in Enhancing Cooperation between the 1540 Committee and International Organizations, including the Security Council Committees Established Pursuant to Resolutions 1267 (1999)/1989 (2011) and 1373 (2001).” The Working Group commented on the non-paper and will continue consultations. Subsequently, the Working Group discussed the Coordinator's recommendations to the Chair of the 1540 Committee on possible future activities and how to move forward. |
| 10 March 2015 | The 1540 Committee’s Working Group on Transparency and Media Outreach held an informal meeting on 10 March 2015. Mr. Michael Rosenthal from the 1540 Committee’s Group of Experts delivered a presentation on social media and outreach, highlighting the 1540 website and other outreach possibilities. Mr. Franz Kolar from the UN Office of Disarmament Affairs gave a presentation on promoting outreach based on the UNODA experience. This was followed by a discussion on these issues by the Working Group. The Working Group further considered possible methods for promoting 1540 outreach through social media and other methods, as well as the financial implications for developing 1540 outreach materials. |
| 26 February 2015 | The 1540 Committee’s Working Group on Transparency and Media Outreach held its first meeting of the year on 26 February 2015. Mr. Michael Rosenthal from the 1540 Committee’s Group of Experts presented two non-papers prepared by the Group of Experts on “A Training Course for 1540 Points of Contact and Other Government Officials Participating in the Implementation of Resolution 1540 (2004)” and “1540 Committee Outreach.” This was followed by a discussion on these issues by the Working Group. |
| 17 November 2014 | The 1540 Committee’s Working Group on Monitoring and Implementation held an informal meeting on 17 November 2014. During the meeting issues related to effective practices in the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1540 (2004) and the format of the Annual Review of Implementation were discussed. |
| 17 November 2014 | An informal meeting of the 1540 Committee’s Working Group on Transparency and Media Outreach was held on 17 November 2014. The WG received a briefing by Mr. Jason T. Harris, former Chair of the International Nuclear Security Education Network (INSEN), on the aims and current activities of INSEN, that include the development of curricula and educational programmes in the field of nuclear security in cooperation with an increasing international membership comprising universities and other educational institutions. Mr. Michael Rosenthal from the 1540 Committee’s Group of Experts delivered remarks on possible future activities of the 1540 Committee related to education and outreach. Furthermore, a number of invited students had the opportunity to talk about their motivation to conduct research in the field of non-proliferation. |
| 13 August 2014 | The 1540 Committee’s Working Group on Monitoring and National Implementation held an informal meeting to discuss the topic: compilation of effective practices in the implementation of resolution 1540 (2004). The working group started the consideration of a draft template being developed by the Group of Experts to integrate the information on effective practices on the 1540 Committee’s webpage "Experiences Shared, Lessons Learned, and Effective Practices”. In this regard, the working group also considered updating this webpage by designating three categories of materials to be posted: “1540 Committee documents”, “Submissions by Member States” and “Submissions by international, regional and sub-regional organizations.” In addition to this specific webpage on effective practices, it considered to also post submissions on effective practices on the webpages “National Reports” and "International, Regional and Subregional Organizations". |
| 2 July 2014 | The 1540 Committee’s Working Groups on Assistance and Cooperation with international organizations held a joint informal meeting to hear two briefings: a first one on border controls by Ambassador Ochieng Adala, Executive Director, Africa Peace Forum; and a second one about the Containers Control Programme by Nicole Maric, Crime Prevention Expert, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. |
| 10 June 2014 | The 1540 Committee’s Working Group on Monitoring and National Implementation held an informal meeting to discuss issues related to updating matrices for all Member States to be prepared by the group of experts for approval by the Committee. The last set of Committee’s matrices was produced in 2010. Discussions included the procedures for the consideration and approval of these new matrices. |
| 3 April 2014 | The 1540 Committee’s Working Group on Monitoring and National Implementation held an informal meeting to discuss the following topics: priority areas of focus for the Working Group in 2014; conversion to the 1540 matrices’ revised template; status of the submission of National Reports; status of the submission of information by Member States on effective practices and exchange of views on a compilation of effective practices; and proposals for developing a living network for national points of contact. |
| 18 September 2013 | The Working Group on Monitoring and National Implementation held an informal meeting and discussed issues related to the preparation of the next Annual Review and Member States' reporting. The Coordinator of the 1540 group of experts briefed the Working Group on the recent activities including Committee's visits to States, voluntary national implementation action plans and 1540 peer review. |
| 18 September 2013 | At the informal meeting of the Working Group on Cooperation with International Organizations, the WG Coordinator presented a non-paper “An Approach to Strategic Goals and Specific Objectives in Enhancing Cooperation between the 1540 Committee and International Organizations, including the Security Council Committees Established Pursuant to Resolutions 1267 (1999)/1989 (2011) and 1373 (2001).” The Working Group will continue its consultations on the non-paper and to study how to move forward with such cooperation. |
| 18 September 2013 | At the informal meeting of the Working Group on Transparency and Media Outreach, the WG Coordinator presented some ideas relates to the upcoming 10th anniversary of resolution 1540 (2004) in 2014. In ensuing discussions, some additional ideas were also advanced. The meeting further discussed planned outreach activities of the Committee and the group of experts including the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) event scheduled for 7 October 2013. |
| 6 June 2013 | The 1540 Working Group on Monitoring and National Implementation held informal consultations to discuss effective practices for the implementation of resolution 1540 (2004) in accordance with paragraph 12 of resolution 1977 (2011). The Coordinator of the 1540 group of experts made a presentation on the issue. The meeting also discussed approaches towards universal reporting of Member States on the implementation of resolution 1540 (2004). |
| 6 June 2013 | The Working Group on Assistance received a briefing from the Coordinator of the 1540 group of experts on recent assistance-related activities, including matchmaking efforts, country visits, and receipt of requests for assistance. The Coordinator of the 1540 group of experts also briefed the Working Group on the status of the preparation of the consolidated list of assistance requests and proposals and the list of national point of contacts on the implementation of resolution 1540 (2004). The Coordinator asked the Group of experts to propose options to the Working Group to withdraw from the consolidated list of assistance requests those requests that were obsolete or already satisfied. |
| 11 March 2013 | The 1540 Working Group on Monitoring and National Implementation held informal consultations to discuss an options paper on enhancing implementation matrices prepared by the 1540 group of experts. The meeting also discussed ways to proceed forward in the Committee’s work on identification of effective practices, templates and guidance as requested in para. 12 of resolution 1977 (2011). The working group will submit its recommendations to the Committee on the issues discussed. |
| 31 January 2013 | The Working Group on Transparency and Media Outreach held a meeting. In his opening remarks, the Coordinator of the Working Group outlined some possible areas of focus for the Group in 2013. The meeting further discussed a number of issues related to the 1540 Committee website, posting national reports submitted to the 1540 Committee, academia and industry outreach and initial ideas related to a media outreach strategy. The Group adopted recommendations for the Committee. |
| 19 December 2012 | The Working Group on Assistance held a meeting. The Coordinator of the Working Group outlined past and planned activities of the working group. As a result of discussions, the Group adopted recommendations for the Committee and the 1540 Group of Experts to prepare new guidelines on assistance and match-making issues, update a consolidated list of assistance requests as well as the "point of contact" list for international, regional and subregional organizations. At the meeting, the representative of France provided a briefing on the preparations for a Conference on Assistance in the context of resolution 1540 (2004) envisaged to take place in 2013 in Paris, to be hosted by its Government and organized in cooperation with the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs. |
| 8 October 2012 | The 1540 Working Group on Monitoring and National Implementation held a meeting and discussed issues related to the preparation of the annual review of the implementation of resolution 1540 (2004) and the update of the 1540 matrices which are the primary method used by the 1540 Committee to organize information about implementation of resolution 1540 (2004) by Member States. |
| 14 March 2012 | The 1540 Working Group on Monitoring and National Implementation held a meeting and discussed the upcoming Conference of International, Regional, and Sub-Regional Industry Associations on Security Council Resolution 1540 to be held on 23-25 April in Wiesbaden, Germany. The 1540 experts provided a briefing on the promotion of 1540 implementation through the use of the 1540 Matrix. |
| 17 January 2012 | The Working Group on Assistance held a meeting and received a briefing from the Stimson Center about effective practices and the potential contributions from 1540 regional coordinators. The 1540 experts provided a report on cooperation with several countries. The Working Group also discussed approaches to improve future ways of assistance and changes to the website. |
| 15 December 2011 | The Working Group on Transparency and Outreach held a meeting and received a briefing from the Office for Disarmament Affairs on the structure of the new 1540 Committee website. The 1540 Experts provided an overview of outreach activities that they had participated in over the past several months. The status of the development of email lists and next steps in the ongoing media outreach strategy were also discussed. |
| 14 December 2011 | The Working Group on Assistance held a meeting and received, at its invitation, a briefing from the Chief of Regional Disarmament Branch of the Office for Disarmament Affairs on the activities undertaken by the UN Regional Centres for Peace and Disarmament, in the context of their assistance to States as well as regional and subregional organizations aimed at reinforcing their capabilities in the field of non-proliferation, disarmament and arms control, particularly with regard the implementation of resolution 1540. The 1540 Experts then briefed the Working Group on their assistance-related activities. The Coordinator then briefed the Working group on the state of play of the discussions on further possible ways forward on assistance-related activities. |
| 5 October 2011 | The Working Group on Assistance held a meeting and received a briefing from the 1540 Experts on recent assistance-related activities, including matchmaking efforts, country visits, and receipt of requests for assistance. The Working Group discussed progress towards achievement of assistance-related objectives, including, inter alia, improving procedures, developing dialogue with civil society organizations, and analysis on current and potential future assistance needs. |
| 30 August 2011 | The Working Group on Transparency and Outreach held a meeting. The coordinator of the Working Group provided brief introductory remarks. A discussion followed on various matters, including the ongoing overhaul of the 1540 Committee website, development of email lists for dissemination of public information and outreach, and implementation of the media outreach strategy. The 1540 Experts provided an update on their outreach activities. |
| 28 July 2011 | The Working Group on Monitoring and National Implementation held a meeting. The coordinator of the Working Group provided brief introductory remarks outlining Group’s tasks. The Working Group’s implementation plan was discussed. |
| 11 May 2011 | The Working Group on Cooperation with International Organizations held a meeting. A representative from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) provided a briefing on UNODC assistance to Member States in regards implementation of requirements of resolution 1540 (2004). |
| 21 March 2011 | The Working Group on Assistance held a meeting and received a briefing from the 1540 Experts on recent assistance-related activities, including, inter alia, matchmaking efforts and the coordination of expected future country visits. The Working Group addressed a number of matters related to future activities, including, inter alia, delineation of assistance-related objectives to guide the work of the 1540 Experts in this area. |
| 16 March 2011 | The Working Group on Transparency and Media Outreach held a meeting. The Working Group addressed matters related to the overhaul of the 1540 Committee website and the development of a Committee’s media outreach strategy. The Working Group also discussed the facilitation of public information regarding outreach events. |
| 2 February 2011 | The Working Group on Transparency and Media Outreach held a meeting to discuss, inter alia, matters related to the development of a new 1540 Committee website, means of correspondence and dissemination of information, development of a media outreach strategy, and the recent and forthcoming outreach events with participation from the 1540 Experts. |
| 2 February 2011 | The Working Group on Assistance held a meeting. The 1540 Experts made a presentation on the status of assistance requests and offers to provide assistance from Member States. The Working Group discussed matters related to the update of the assistance page on the 1540 Committee website, development of new procedures to streamline the assistance process, and the database on assistance requests. |