UN: Members must combat spread of chemical weapons and new techs

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – The United Nations Security Council stated that it is crucial for member states to increase their efforts to combat the spread of deadly weaponry like armed drones and chemical weapons in order to prevent the possibility of them falling into the hands of terrorist organizations and other non-State actors.

“Many of the technologies, goods and raw materials required to produce weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems were available through legitimate producers,” Izumi Nakamitsu, High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, briefed the Security Council. 

She emphasized the importance of international cooperation with the private sector to eradicate illicit purchase and trafficking routes.

With rapidly increasing technology, threats such as drones, 3D printing and the “dark web” being created and used by terrorists hinder non-proliferation efforts of UN member states, read the UN statement.

She added that terrorist groups, alongside other non-state actors, evolved into cyberspace using loopholes to access the technology that they needed.

“The international community must prosecute all those responsible for supporting terrorist actions, “she said.

Ballard believes that the focus must shift to preventing the re-emergence of chemical weapons and that programs and resources need to be adjusted as needs arose.

“Preventing non-State actors from acquiring dual-use materials, equipment and technologies was of critical importance to maintaining the global norm against the use of chemical weapons and in favor of international peace and security,” he said.

The representative of the United States underlined the need for greater controls over chemical materials, saying that exchanging expertise was important in that regard.

Syria’s representative said that the worst violations of resolution 1540 (2004) were the assistance, support and training provided to terrorist groups by some Western States. 

With the rise of ISIS in Iraq and Syria in 2014, local forces alongside US-led coalition forces have often witnessed the use of new technologies during combat.

Kurdish General Salar Taymour previously told Rudaw in an interview that an ISIS surveillance drone captured by the Peshmerga had provided a glimpse into some of the sophisticated technology in the hands of the militants, at the time when the clock was ticking for an offensive to evict ISIS from its Mosul stronghold in northern Iraq.

Earlier this week, France 24 reported ISIS targeting the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) by using drones to drop grenade-sized munitions as the forces enter Raqqa to retake the city from militants.

The coalition told Rudaw English in that it uses “jammers” but has “other ways to eliminate the threat,” not wanting to get into details that would provide any insight “that would help the enemy.”

Let's block ads! (Why?)

from Rudaw http://ift.tt/2tpj29h
via Defense News