United
Nations


General Assembly

Distr.
GENERAL
A/RES/51/47
8 January 1997


Fifty-first session
Agenda item 73


RESOLUTIONS ADOPTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY


[on the report of the First Committee (A/51/566/Add.13)]


51/47. Review of the implementation of the
recommendations and decisions adopted
by the General Assembly at its tenth
special session


A

Expansion of the membership of the Conference on Disarmament


The General Assembly,

Having considered the report of the Conference on Disarmament 1/ and in particular the section concerning the expansion of the membership of the Conference,

Stressing the role of the Conference on Disarmament as the sole multilateral global negotiating body on disarmament,

Convinced that a more representative membership of the Conference on Disarmament from among the United Nations would contribute to the more effective pursuit of disarmament goals affecting the entire international community,

Recalling that, since 1978, when agreement was reached at the first special session of the General Assembly devoted to disarmament that the membership of the then Committee on Disarmament would be reviewed at regular intervals, there have been thirty-seven applications for membership in the Conference,

Recalling also that, in 1993, the Special Coordinator for Membership of the Conference on Disarmament proposed that twenty-three applicants for membership should be admitted to the Conference and proposed further that a dynamic solution to the question of membership should be pursued,

Recalling further decision CD/1406 of the Conference on Disarmament, adopted at its 739th plenary meeting on 17 June 1996, admitting twenty-three countries as members of the Conference, 2/

Recalling its resolution 50/72 C of 12 December 1995, adopted without a vote, in which it urged that, following the presentation of progress reports by the President of the Conference, the other applicants to date be further considered by the Conference at its 1996 session,

Noting the request of the Conference on Disarmament that its President continue consultations on a further expansion of its membership and report to it at the beginning of its 1997 session,

1. Recognizes the legitimate aspirations of all countries that have applied for membership to participate fully in the work of the Conference on Disarmament;

2. Calls upon the Conference on Disarmament to consider all remaining applications for membership with a view to reaching a decision on its further enlargement before the end of its 1997 session.

79th plenary meeting
10 December 1996


B

Report of the Disarmament Commission


The General Assembly,

Having considered the report of the Disarmament Commission, 3/

Recalling its resolutions 47/54 A of 9 December 1992, 47/54 G of 8 April 1993, 48/77 A of 16 December 1993, 49/77 A of 15 December 1994 and 50/72 D of 12 December 1995,

Considering the role that the Disarmament Commission has been called upon to play and the contribution that it should make in examining and submitting recommendations on various problems in the field of disarmament and in the promotion of the implementation of the relevant decisions adopted by the General Assembly at its tenth special session,

1. Takes note of the report of the Disarmament Commission; 3/

2. Commends the Disarmament Commission for its adoption by consensus, at its 1996 substantive session, of a set of guidelines for international arms transfers in the context of General Assembly resolution 46/36 H of 6 December 1991, 4/ which were recommended to the Assembly for consideration;

3. Endorses the guidelines for international arms transfers in the context of General Assembly resolution 46/36 H of 6 December 1991, as adopted by the Disarmament Commission;

4. Notes with satisfaction that the Disarmament Commission has made significant progress in the discussions on its agenda item regarding the convening of the fourth special session of the General Assembly devoted to disarmament;

5. Reaffirms the importance of further enhancing the dialogue and cooperation among the First Committee, the Disarmament Commission and the Conference on Disarmament;

6. Also reaffirms the role of the Disarmament Commission as the specialized, deliberative body within the United Nations multilateral disarmament machinery that allows for in-depth deliberations on specific disarmament issues, leading to the submission of concrete recommendations on those issues;

7. Encourages the Disarmament Commission to continue to make every effort to enhance its working methods so as to enable it to give focused consideration to a limited number of priority issues in the field of disarmament, bearing in mind the decision it has taken to move its agenda towards a three-item phased approach;

8. Requests the Disarmament Commission to continue its work in accordance with its mandate, as set forth in paragraph 118 of the Final Document of the Tenth Special Session of the General Assembly, 5/ and with paragraph 3 of Assembly resolution 37/78 H of 9 December 1982, and to that end to make every effort to achieve specific recommendations on the items of its agenda, taking into account the adopted "Ways and means to enhance the functioning of the Disarmament Commission"; 6/

9. Recommends that, pursuant to the adopted three-item phased approach, the Disarmament Commission, at its 1996 organizational session, adopt the following items for consideration at its 1997 substantive session:

(a) The establishment of nuclear-weapon-free zones on the basis of arrangements freely arrived at among the States of the region concerned;

(b) The fourth special session of the General Assembly devoted to disarmament;

(c) [to be added]; 7/

10. Requests the Disarmament Commission to meet for a period not exceeding four weeks during 1997 and to submit a substantive report to the General Assembly at its fifty-second session;

11. Requests the Secretary-General to transmit to the Disarmament Commission the annual report of the Conference on Disarmament, 1/ together with all the official records of the fifty- first session of the General Assembly relating to disarmament matters, and to render all assistance that the Commission may require for implementing the present resolution;

12. Also requests the Secretary-General to ensure full provision to the Disarmament Commission and its subsidiary bodies of interpretation and translation facilities in the official languages and to assign, as a matter of priority, all the necessary resources and services, including verbatim records, to that end;

13. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its fifty- second session the item entitled "Report of the Disarmament Commission".

79th plenary meeting
10 December 1996


C

Report of the Conference on Disarmament


The General Assembly,

Having considered the report of the Conference on Disarmament, 1/

Convinced that the Conference on Disarmament, as the single multilateral disarmament negotiating forum of the international community, has the primary role in substantive negotiations on priority questions of disarmament,

Considering, in this respect, that the present international climate should give additional impetus to multilateral negotiations with the aim of reaching concrete agreements,

1. Reaffirms the role of the Conference on Disarmament as the single multilateral disarmament negotiating forum of the international community;

2. Welcomes the determination of the Conference on Disarmament to fulfil that role in the light of the evolving international situation, with a view to making early substantive progress on priority items of its agenda;

3. Also welcomes the decision taken by the Conference on Disarmament on 17 June 1996 to expand its membership with the admission of twenty-three new members; 2/

4. Encourages the Conference on Disarmament to continue further review of its membership;

5. Also encourages the Conference on Disarmament to intensify further the ongoing review of its agenda and methods of work;

6. Urges the Conference on Disarmament to make every effort to reach a consensus on its agenda and programme of work at the beginning of its 1997 session;

7. Requests the Secretary-General to continue to ensure the provision to the Conference on Disarmament of adequate administrative, substantive and conference support services;

8. Requests the Conference on Disarmament to submit a report on its work to the General Assembly at its fifty-second session;

9. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its fifty- second session the item entitled "Report of the Conference on Disarmament".

79th plenary meeting
10 December 1996


Notes

1/ Official Records of the General Assembly, Fifty-first Session, Supplement No. 27 (A/51/27).

2/ Ibid., para. 16.

3/ Ibid., Supplement No. 42 (A/51/42).

4/ Ibid., annex I.

5/ Resolution S-10/2.

6/ A/CN.10/137.

7/ The new item on conventional weapons will be decided by the Disarmament Commission at its 1996 organizational session.