Togo and Senegal Host Visits by Security Council’s 1540 Committee, 15-16 And 18-19 June 2015

New York, 30 June 2015 (Office for Disarmament Affairs) – A delegation supporting the work of the United Nations Security Council’s 1540 Committee has concluded visits to Senegal and Togo, carried out at the invitation of the respective Governments.

The delegation consisted of two members of the 1540 Committee’s Expert Group as well as representatives from the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Africa ( UNREC ). The main goal of the visits was to provide assistance to Senegal and Togo in the drafting process of their National Action Plans to guide the implementation of Security Council resolution 1540 (2004). Both visits concentrated further on identifying possible assistance needs and discussing future steps to be undertaken by the two states in accordance with the resolution.

In Lomé, Togo, the delegation held working sessions with various national stakeholders involved in the implementation of resolution 1540 (2004), including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Ministry of Security and Civil Protection, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources and Ministry of Finance.

Resolution 1540 (2004) was adopted unanimously by the Security Council, under the United Nations Charter’s Chapter VII, on 28 April 2004. It requires all States to refrain from providing any form of support to non-State actors attempting to develop, acquire, manufacture, possess, transport, transfer or use nuclear, chemical or biological weapons and their means of delivery. The resolution requires all States to establish domestic controls to prevent the proliferation of those weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery, including by establishing appropriate controls over related materials.

The 1540 Committee, a subsidiary body of the Council, reports to it on implementation of the resolution. On 20 April 2011, the Security Council adopted resolution 1977 (2011), by which it extended the Committee’s mandate until 2021.

For additional information about the 1540 Committee, please visit their website.

For additional information about UNREC, please visit the UNREC website.