March 2025 E-News
The past month has been busy for the disarmament community! In Geneva, delegations met at the end of February for the Arms Trade Treaty Working Group meetings, which held important discussions around the arms industry, gender, and more. The following week, delegations gathered for this year’s first session of the Group of Governments (GGE) on Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (LAWS), during which they discussed topics such as human control, building on the rolling text proposed by the GGE Chair. In New York, the Third Meeting of States Parties (3MSP) to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) adopted its report, a declaration, and a set of decisions for advancing the Treaty’s implementation and universalisation. RCW covered all these meetings, providing advocacy, analysis, reporting, and archiving statements and documents on our website. If you enjoy our work, please consider a donation to RCW to support our engagement across international forums!
Upcoming disarmament meetings
Third Session of the Preparatory Committee for the Eleventh Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)
The Third Session of the Preparatory Committee for the Eleventh Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) will be held 28 April–9 May 2025 in New York. The deadline for civil society registration has passed. See RCW’s website for more information on civil society participation and the calendar for side events. If you are you a WILPF member that wishes to join the WILPF delegation, please contact Emma Bjertén at emma.bjerten[@]wilpf.org before 14 April 2025.
Informal consultations on lethal autonomous weapons systems
Pursuant to resolution 79/62 adopted by the UN General Assembly on 2 December 2024, an informal consultation on lethal autonomous weapons systems will take place on 12 and 13 May 2025 at United Nations Headquarters in New York.
Recently concluded disarmament meetings
Arms Trade Treaty Working Group Meetings
On 24–27 February 2025, delegations met in Geneva for the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) Working Group meetings. The most important conversations were held within the Sub-Working Group on Current and Emerging Implementation Issues. However, these debates only occurred against strong opposition from certain states that tried to block the discussions with the argument that talking about these issues would “politicise the ATT”. Fortunately, several delegations demonstrated commitment to making the ATT fit for purpose and defended the inclusion of these discussions in the agenda. Check out our coverage of the meeting in the ATT Monitor.
Third Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons
On 7 March 2025, the Third Meeting of States Parties (3MSP) to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) adopted its report, a declaration, and a set of decisions about the TPNW’s intersessional structure, an international trust fund for victim assistance and environmental remediation, and a review process for the renewal of the mandate and terms of reference for the Scientific Advisory Group. 3MSP also decided to hold the first TPNW review conference within the week of 30 November–4 December 2026 in New York, with South Africa as the President of the conference. Beyond these decisions, the clearest outcome was the unified rejection by states parties and signatories of nuclear weapons and of nuclear deterrence theory. The declaration contends that nuclear deterrence “is posited on the very existence of nuclear risk, which threatens the survival of all,” and condemns “any rhetoric or actions that undermine the global taboo” against nuclear weapons. Many states, survivors, activists, academics, and others echoed this sentiment during the week-long meeting, and this approach has guided the ongoing work to implement the Treaty during the intersessional period. It is this firm, collective conviction against the bomb that will continue to drive the TPNW forward in these dangerous times.
See RCW's Nuclear Ban Daily for reports and analysis from 3MSP, and check our website for statements and documents from the meeting.
Group of Governmental Experts on Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems
On 3–7 March 2025, the Group of Governmental Experts (GGE) on Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (LAWS) met in Geneva for its first session of the year. Unlike previous meetings, which some could say are generally marked by a feeling of impending doom, this session felt a bit more hopeful. That was due to the high-quality discussions that delegations were able to have, particularly around human control. While divergences clearly still exist, the feeling in the room was that at least now delegations have more clarity about the reasons behind each other’s positions. And as expected, some of the reasons proved to be quite problematic. See RCW's CCW Report for reports and analysis from the GGW, and check our website for statements and documents from the meeting.
Joint General Assembly and Economic and Social Council Meeting on Small Arms and Light Weapons Control for Preventing Violence and Advancing Sustainable Development
On Monday, 17 March 2025 the UN General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), in cooperation with the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs, held a joint meeting to raise awareness of the importance of addressing small arms and light weapons (SALW) in a holistic manner. The meeting sought to provide a platform for coordinated action, fostering collaboration across relevant stakeholders to strengthen SALW control and its integration into broader UN frameworks. After opening remarks from the Presidents of the General Assembly and of ECOSOC, the meeting heard a panel discussion focusing on integrated approaches to SALW in security and sustainable development, and a second on achieving gender equality and preventing gender-based violence through gender-responsive disarmament, arms control, and the prevention of armed violence.
Military spending on the rise but facing opposition
Military spending is increasing worldwide. The United Kingdom (UK) has announced drastic cuts to its international aid budget to help pay for a major increase in military spending. Likewise, the European Union (EU) also announced an 800 billion euro boost in military spending. While the European Investment Bank (EIB) promised to increase the availability of loans to the military sector, weapons companies said they needed not just financing, but actual demand and contracts. This is expected to increase soon, as many European military companies, including BAE Systems, Thales, Rheinmetall, and others, are expected to increase their profits following the EU’s announcement.
In opposition to these trends, WILPF has recently submitted a contribution to the UN Secretary-General’s report on military spending, in which we offered analysis and recommendations on the impact of military expenditure on the Sustainable Development Goals; the need for a feminist critique of military expenditure; the need for the UN to effectively address military expenditure; and the need to rethink “development” and economic growth.
If you are interested in learning more about military spending and WILPF’s position, check out the new season of WILPF’s Podcast Think and Resist! In episode 2, RCW Manager Emma Bjertén talked with researchers, policy makers, and advocates about the meaning of military expenditure, debunked myths and explored the drivers behind military spending. On episode 3, Emma continues the conversation in an interview with Taylor Barnes, field reporter at Inkstick, where they specifically discus the US arms industry.
If you want to get involved in reducing military spending, the Global Campaign on Military Spending is organising the annual Global Days of Action on Military Spending from 10 April–9 May. You can also sign a petition calling the EU leaders to reject the ReArm Europe plan.
Arms trade profiteers face scrutiny and pushback
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) has published new data about arms transfers in 2024. According to SIPRI, arms exports by the United States (US) increased by 21 per cent between 2015–19 and 2020–24, and its share of global arms exports grew from 35 per cent to 43 per cent. The US supplied weapons to 107 states in 2020–24. SIPRI also highlighted that Ukraine became the world’s largest importer of major arms in the period 2020–24.
Meanwhile, in the US, the new Trump administration has issued an executive order to pause the enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. As William Hartung and Ashley Gate wrote for the Responsible Statecraft, “this move by the Trump administration to pause enforcement of the foreign bribery law now and allow it to be put on the shelf later risks a revival of the pre-1970s period, when bribery was a routine practice among major U.S. arms contractors.”
A new report published by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) examines gaps with respect to the role of states and the private sector to prevent, address and mitigate the negative human rights impacts of arms transfers, including unregulated illicit arms transfers and diversion. “Arms transfers are not a human rights-free zone, as our report makes clear. Both States and private actors have clear obligations and responsibilities under international law and standards,” UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said. He also noted that “more efforts must be taken to investigate, prosecute and punish those who assist in perpetrating international crimes through arms transfers. Barriers to effectively challenge arms transfer decisions through independent courts should also be reviewed and lifted.”
On 17 March 2025, WILPF delivered a statement to the UN Human Rights Council recalling the OHCHR report’s findings on the failure of governance systems overseeing arms transfers. Among the priority areas for action outlined in the OHCHR report, WILPF emphasised the critical importance of scrutinising the role of private actors involved in the arms trade—including in logistics, transport, banking, and insurance; and ensuring access to justice, given the unacceptable gaps in access to justice for arms transfer decisions.
Stop Arming Israel
Earlier this month, a new report issued by the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory highlights Israel's systematic use of sexual, reproductive and other forms of gender-based violence since October 2023. The Commission underlined that “Israel has increasingly employed sexual, reproductive and other forms of gender-based violence against Palestinians as part of a broader effort to undermine their right to self-determination and carried out genocidal acts through the systematic destruction of sexual and reproductive healthcare facilities.”
Amidst increasing evidence of Israel’s human rights violations, people worldwide continue to organise against arms transfers. Harvard Law School students passed a referendum urging the university to divest from Israel. In Denmark, 20 people were arrested in a protest against arms supply to Israel. A group of 70 global civil society organisations, including WILPF, have also signed a letter calling on the shareholders of the Danish shipping giant A.P. Møller – Mærsk A/S to vote for a proposal to disclose its human rights due diligence processes concerning arms shipments to Israel.
Activists have also called on Brazil, which has recognised Israel’s genocide of Palestinians, to stop purchasing military equipment from Israeli companies. Ghana has also been criticised for contracting with the Israeli company NSO Group to purchase the infamous Pegasus spyware, which facilitated human rights abuses worldwide.
Gender and Disarmament Database: Recommendation of the month
Our recommendation of the month is the article “Untold stories: Exploring the link between the illicit proliferation and possession of weapons and gender-based violence in Lebanon,” written by Shirine Jurdi and Nancy Ehrenberg-Peters. Based on interviews with gender-based violence (GBV) associations and a survey with women survivors of weapons-related violence, the paper investigates the correlation between the illicit and uncontrolled proliferation and possession of small arms and light weapons and GBV in Lebanon.
The Gender and Disarmament Database, created and maintained by Reaching Critical Will, features a wide range of resources such as reports, articles, books and book chapters, policy documents, podcasts, legislation, and UN documents. The database allows the exploration of relevant resources based on their references to distinctive gender aspects in disarmament, such as gender-based violence, gender norms, or gender diversity, and different related topics or types of weapon systems. It currently contains more than 800 resources. Suggestions of new additions can be sent to disarm[at]WILPF[dot]com.
Upcoming events
Conferences
Third Session of the Preparatory Committee for the Eleventh Review Conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)
28 April–9 May 2025 | New York, United States
Informal consultations on lethal autonomous weapons systems
12–13 May 2025 | New York, United States
Informal Preparatory Meeting of the 11th Conference of States Parties to the Arms Trade Treaty (CSP11)
20–21 May 2025 | Geneva, Switzerland
Events
Global Days of Action on Military Spending
10 April–9 May 2025 | World
Featured news
New US administration fires military lawyers to avoid scrutiny
Peter Wade reports that the US “Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth defended the Trump administration’s purge of top military lawyers because they don’t want people in those roles who “attempt to be roadblocks to … anything that happens.” Don Christensen, a retired military judge and former top prosecutor for the Air Force told CNN that the firings were “extremely concerning” and the people in these roles “serve as a conscience of the military and a moral guide as to what’s right and wrong.”
European and Canadian politicians urge expansion “nuclear deterrence”
Friedrich Merz, Germany’s incoming chancellor, called for talks with the United Kingdom and France on “supplementing the American nuclear shield”. On 5 March, Emmanuel Macron, France’s president, announceda “strategic debate on using our deterrence to protect our allies on the European continent”. Following that, on 7 March, Donald Tusk, Poland’s prime minister, responded to the call in a speech at the Polish Parliament saying that “we would be safer if we had our own nuclear arsenal.” The Belgian Prime Minister also supported efforts to create an European “nuclear umbrella”. Meanwhile in Canada, former deputy prime minister Chrystia Freeland urged strengthening relationships with France and the UK, as nuclear weapon possessors, to protect against the Trump regime’s threats against Canadian sovereignty. In response to these calls, the European partners of ICAN issued a press release urging Europe to pursue nuclear disarmament instead.
New documentary about uranium mining in Navajo land
The documentary “Ways of Knowing: A Navajo Nuclear History” is debuting at the South by Southwest (SXSW) Festival. “'Ways of Knowing' is an immersive documentary about Navajo resilience to protect health, tradition, and land after enduring extensive uranium mining by the US government throughout the Cold War. Eight decades after the Manhattan Project, which initiated the nuclear-industrial complex, Indigenous communities across the US Southwest continue to suffer from toxic exposure and live among contaminated land and waterways. But the landscape and its elements—including uranium—have been considered sacred long before this history. “Ways of Knowing” illuminates “how, despite generations of personal and environmental trauma, there is still a profound reason for hope and healing.”
Fourteen years since the Fukushima nuclear disaster
11 March 2025 marked 14 years since a massive earthquake and tsunami triggered the Fukushima nuclear disaster. The disaster caused widespread radioactive contamination of the surrounding area and led to the displacement of thousands of people. In August 2023, the Japanese government began dumping contaminated wastewater into the Pacific Ocean, which has been met with widespread protest by Japanese fishers, neighbouring countries, activists, and many Pacific nations. RCW’s report on Fukushima, which explored the costs, risks, and myths of nuclear power, is still relevant today.
Lithuania’s withdrawal from the Cluster Munitions Convention takes effect
On 6 March 2025, Lithuania formally withdrew from the Convention on Cluster Munitions. The International Campaign to Ban Landmines – Cluster Munition Coalition (ICBL-CMC) noted that this is “an unprecedented move with potentially profound consequences for the protection of civilians in Lithuania and elsewhere.” Meanwhile, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia are openly questioning their continued adherence to other humanitarian treaties, including the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention (APMBC). In a recent blog post, Cordula Droege and Maya Brehm from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) argue that justifications for using anti-personnel mines tend to be divorced from battlefield realities and overlook the appalling impacts of these treacherous weapons. They also show how efforts to circumvent or abandon the APMBC challenge fundamental precepts of international humanitarian law and undermine the international rule of law.
Explosive Weapons Monitor publishes new updated state profiles
The Explosive Weapons Monitor, which monitors states’ positions on the issue of explosive weapons in populated areas (EWIPA) and the Political Declaration, has published updated state profiles on its website. This monitoring takes stock of positions shared by states since 2009, including acknowledgement of the issue of explosive weapons in populated areas, commitments to action to address it, positions taken in the negotiations of the Political Declaration, and information shared on national efforts on universalisation and implementation of the Political Declaration. State positions include statements delivered by states in relevant fora, including UN General Assembly First Committee meetings, the UN Security Council Open Debate on the Protection of Civilians, meetings of the High Contracting Parties to the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons, key meetings related to the Political Declaration, as well as responses to Explosive Weapons Monitor’s state survey on implementation. State profiles were last updated in March 2025 and include statements made by states through 31 December 2024.
Israel’s use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools provided by US tech companies raises concerns
AP reports that US tech companies, including Microsoft and OpenAI, have significantly enhanced Israel’s military capabilities in Gaza and Lebanon by providing AI tools for tracking and targeting militants. However, the use of AI has also led to a sharp increase in civilian casualties, raising ethical concerns about its role in warfare.
US and India announce new partnership on autonomous systems
In February 2025, the US and India announced an “Autonomous Systems Industry Alliance (ASIA),” aimed at “boosting co-development and co-production of maritime drones and counter-drone systems.” The countries highlighted a new partnership between Anduril and Mahindra Group which would “work together to provide advanced capacity to India, leveraging Anduril’s autonomous systems and advanced AI solutions, and software-defined hardware to enhance operational effectiveness across multiple domains.”
Border between India, Pakistan, and China sees surge in use of drones
The piece by Hanam Zaffar highlights that “the border areas between India, Pakistan, and China have become a high-tech battleground in recent years,” which has “raised concerns about accidental escalations, violations of territorial sovereignty, and the growing risk that unmanned incursions could trigger conflicts in this critical South Asian belt.”
Portugal decides not to procure F-35 fighter jets
The Portuguese Defense Minister, Nuno Melo, dismissed the possibility of ordering the F-35 fighter jetspointing directly “at the uncertainty surrounding the Trump administration as a key factor in the decision.” According to The Avionist, “Trump’s controversial remarks about NATO, questioning member contributions and even suggesting the U.S. might not uphold its defense commitments, as well as the decision to halt the deliveries of weapons as well as the sharing of intelligence with Ukraine following the meeting with Zelensky at the White House, have raised alarms across Europe.”
Princeton School of Science and Global Security opens call for applications
Princeton University’s Program on Science and Global Security invites applications from science, mathematics, and engingeering students and post-docs for the Princeton School on Science and Global Security, to be held on 9–15 October 2025. The annual Princeton School on Science and Global Security is an opportunity for next-generation scientists and engineers from around the world to engage with technical perspectives on understanding, reducing, and ending the threat from nuclear weapons. The goal of the School is to provide skills and insights that participants can use in their own research, and to encourage and inspire them to investigate new ideas to advance global security and a safer and more peaceful world. Applications close on 15 June.
Recommended resources
"How can healthcare access be strengthened in settings where explosive weapons are being used?," Humanity and Inclusion, 18 March 2025
Webinar: “Iron Man and the MIC: Resisting the Military Industrial Complex,” Network to Dismantle the Military Industrial Complex, 17 March 2025
William D. Hartung, “The New Age Militarists,” TomDispatch, 18 March 2025
M. V. Ramana, “Continued Propaganda About AI and Nuclear Power,” CounterPunch, 13 March 2025
Michael Picard, “In Gaza, Trump Embraces Private Military Contractors,” Inkstick, 12 March 2025
Lillian Mauldin, “U.S. Police Militarization in the Age of Trump ICE Raids,” Corruption Tracker, 11 March 2025
“Assessing Trump’s First 50 Days,” Forum on the Arms Trade, 11 March 2025
“A Europe of Peace for all Peoples,” Rete Italiana Pace e Disarmo, 6 March 2025
Andrew Feinstein and Jack Cinamon, “Why is an “ethical” investor funding arms companies?” Declassified UK, 5 March 2025
Manon Blancafort, Emile LeBrun, and Andrea Edoardo Varisco, “Open Markets: Documenting Arms Availability in Afghanistan under the Taliban,” Small Arms Survey, March 2025
Stephen Semler and Sarah Lazare, “The Myth of Pentagon Budget Cuts,” In These Times, 27 February 2025
“Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas: Questions and Answers,” Human Rights Watch and Harvard Law School’s International Human Rights Clinic, 26 February 2025
Ben Freeman, “Guess who is standing between DOGE and the Pentagon?,” Responsible Statecraft, 25 February 2025
Emily Mitchell-Eaton, “’Ready? Now Drop the Bomb’: A Feminist Reading of Nuclear Overlay Maps and the Cartographic Politics of Comparison,” Geopolitics, 20 February 2025
Ian Overton, “The rise of autonomous warfare: a conversation with Dr Paddy Walker on his book ‘War Without Oversight: Why We Need Humans on the Battlefield’,” Action on Armed Violence, 17 February 2025
León Castellanos-Jankiewicz and Antonio Guzmán Mutis, “The Right to a Remedy for Wrongful European Arms Exports: Minding the Accountability Gap?” The George Washinton International Law Review, Volume 56, Issue 3, 2025