Moroccan Parliamentary Representation at the Inter-Parliamentary Union Takes Part in the Forth Meeting on Small Arms

Rep. Ahmed TOUIZI, Member of the Moroccan Parliamentary Representation at the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) participated via a videoconference on Thursday, March 10, 2022, in the fourth Inter-Parliamentary Meeting of Africa, Europe and the Americas, under the theme: "Disarmament that Saves Lives: Curbing Uncontrolled Flows of Small Arms and Light Weapons: the Role of Parliaments”, organized by the Inter-Parliamentary Union, the Parliamentary Forum on Small Arms and Light Weapons (PFSALW), Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament (PNND), the Geneva Center for Security Policy (GCSP) and the World Future Council (WFC).

The participating experts called parliamentarians for strengthening laws and monitoring their enforcement, particularly those related to international resolutions and initiatives aimed at disarmament and prevention of nuclear weapons proliferation by every State, in accordance with the resolutions of the UN Security Council and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) related to nuclear activities. In this regard, the participants stressed that parliaments play a crucial role in scaling up disarmament efforts, namely through the ratification of international resolutions and initiatives aimed at achieving this end, the creation of synergies with governments, civil society and UN agencies, and openness to multilateral international fora.

In the same vein, the experts reiterated the priority of neutralizing weapons of mass destruction (nuclear, chemical and biological weapons), noting that disarmament and arms control are not only instruments for maintaining international peace and security, or preventing and ending armed conflicts, but also instruments for mitigating the effects of armed conflicts in the event of their eruption.

It should be noted that this meeting featured the presentation of the Parliamentary Handbook to Support Disarmament for Security and Sustainable Development, entitled "Assuring our Common Future", which aims to support parliamentary efforts in all areas of disarmament and share the best parliamentary practices in the field of nuclear arms control.