Introductory text

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty on European Union, and in particular Articles 28(1) and 31(1) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy,

Whereas:

The European Security Strategy adopted by the European Council on 12 December 2003 outlines five key challenges to be addressed by the Union: terrorism, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, regional conflicts, state failure, and organised crime. The consequences of the uncontrolled circulation of conventional weapons are central to four of those five challenges. That Strategy underlines the importance of export controls to contain weapons proliferation. The new Global Strategy for the Union's foreign and security policy, titled ‘Shared Vision, Common Action: A Stronger Europe’, which was presented by the High Representative on 28 June 2016, confirms the Union's support for the universalisation, full implementation and enforcement of multilateral disarmament, non-proliferation and arms control treaties and regimes.

On 5 June 1998, the Union adopted a politically binding Code of Conduct on Arms Exports, which sets common criteria to regulate the legal trade in conventional weapons.

The Union Strategy to combat illicit accumulation and trafficking of small arms and light weapons (SALW) and their ammunition, adopted by the European Council on 15 and 16 December 2005, provides that the Union, at regional and international levels, supports the strengthening of export controls and the promotion of the criteria of the Code of Conduct on Arms Exports by, inter alia, helping third countries to draft relevant national legislation and to promote measures to improve transparency.

The Code of Conduct on Arms Exports was replaced on 8 December 2008 by Council Common Position 2008/944/CFSP^f1, which establishes eight criteria against which applications for the export of conventional arms are to be assessed. It also includes a notification and consultation mechanism for arms exports denials, and transparency measures such as the yearly publication of an EU annual report on arms exports. A number of third countries have aligned themselves with Common Position 2008/944/CFSP.

Article 11 of Common Position 2008/944/CFSP states that Member States are to use their best endeavours to encourage other States which export military technology or equipment to apply the criteria contained in that Common Position.

The Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) was adopted by the UN General Assembly in April 2013 and entered into force on 24 December 2014. The Treaty aims to strengthen transparency and responsibility in the arms trade. As with Common Position 2008/944/CFSP, the ATT lays down a number of risk assessment criteria against which arms exports have to be assessed. The Union concretely supports the effective implementation and universalisation of the ATT through its dedicated programmes adopted under Council Decision 2013/768/CFSP^f2 and Council Decision (CFSP) 2017/915^f3. Those programmes assist a number of third countries, where they so request, in strengthening their arms transfer control systems in line with the requirements of the Treaty.

It is therefore important to ensure complementarity between the outreach and assistance activities provided for in the present Decision and those provided for in Decision (CFSP) 2017/915.

Union activities to promote effective and transparent arms export controls have developed since 2008 under Joint Action 2008/230/CFSP^f4 and Council Decisions 2009/1012/CFSP^f5 and 2012/711/CFSP^f6 and Council Decision (CFSP) 2015/2309^f7. The activities carried out have notably supported further regional cooperation, enhanced transparency and greater responsibility, in line with the principles of Common Position 2008/944/CFSP and the risk assessment criteria enshrined therein. The activities in question have traditionally addressed third countries of the eastern and southern neighbourhoods of the Union.

In recent years, the Union has also provided assistance to improve export controls on dual-use goods in third countries, and effective coordination should be ensured between the arms export control activities covered by this Decision and those activities on export controls of dual-use goods.

The German Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control (‘BAFA’) has been entrusted by the Council with the technical implementation of Decisions 2009/1012/CFSP and 2012/711/CFSP and Decision (CFSP) 2015/2309. BAFA is also an implementing agency for projects supporting the effective implementation of the ATT under Decision 2013/768/CFSP and Decision (CFSP) 2017/915. BAFA is the competent agency for arms control of an EU Member State, and has developed a large body of knowledge and expertise on outreach activities, in addition to sharing its core competencies with other states,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION: