General Assembly First Committee
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The United Nations General Assembly First Committee (also known as the Disarmament and International Security Committee or DISEC or C1) is one of six main committees at the
General Assembly A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company. Specific examples of general assembly include: Churches * General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presby ...
of the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
. It deals with
disarmament Disarmament is the act of reducing, limiting, or abolishing weapons. Disarmament generally refers to a country's military or specific type of weaponry. Disarmament is often taken to mean total elimination of weapons of mass destruction, such as n ...
and
international security International security, also called global security is a term which refers to the measures taken by states and international organizations, such as the United Nations, European Union, and others, to ensure mutual survival and safety. These meas ...
matters. The First Committee meets every year in October for a 4–5 week session, after the General Assembly General Debate. All 193 member states of the UN can attend. It is the only Main Committee of the General Assembly entitled to verbatim records.


Mandate

The work of the Committee falls under seven thematic clusters: * Nuclear weapons * Other weapons of mass destruction * Outer space. (disarmament aspects) * Conventional weapons * Regional disarmament and security * Other disarmament measures and international security * Disarmament machinery


Working Methods

The work of the Committee usually begins in late September and ends by the end of October or early November. The work of the body is split into three stages: (1) general debate, (2) thematic discussions and (3) action on drafts. During the first stage, the general debate, the Committee discusses its agenda items for around eight days. This period of debate is then followed by two weeks of thematic discussions on each of the seven clusters. During this stage, the body hears testimony from high-level officials in the field of arms control and disarmament. It also holds hearings in the form of interactive panel discussions with various representatives from disarmament entities. In the final stage, the body votes on any resolutions or decisions that it has drawn up during its session.


Reporting bodies

The First Committee has two main bodies that report to it: the Disarmament Commission (UNDC) and the Conference on Disarmament (CD). It also hears reports from any expert groups it establishes.


Disarmament Commission

The Disarmament Commission meets yearly in
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
for three weeks hosting both plenary meetings and working groups. The work of the Commission is usually divided between two working groups, with each group tackling one topic from the whole range of disarmament issues for that session, one of which must include nuclear disarmament. The Commission reports to the General Assembly via the First Committee at least once a year.


Conference on Disarmament

While the Conference on Disarmament is not formally part of the United Nations machinery, it still reports to the General Assembly annually, or more frequently, as appropriate. Its budget is also included in that of the United Nations. The Conference meets in Geneva triannually and focuses on the following issues: * Cessation of the nuclear arms race and nuclear disarmament * Prevention of nuclear war * Prevention of an arms race in outer space * Effective international arrangements to assure non-nuclear-weapon States against the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons * New types of weapons of mass destruction and new systems of such weapons including radiological weapons * Comprehensive programme of disarmament and transparency in armaments.


Current state

In its 76th Session, the Committee will focus on: * Disarmament ** Reduction of military budgets ** African Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone Treaty ** Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean (Treaty of Tlatelolco) ** Maintenance of international security – good-neighbourliness, stability and development in South-Eastern Europe ** Developments in the field of information and telecommunications in the context of international security ** Establishment of a nuclear-weapon-free zone in the region of the Middle East ** Conclusion of effective international arrangements to assure non-nuclear-weapon States against the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons ** Prevention of an arms race in outer space ** Role of science and technology in the context of international security and disarmament ** General and complete disarmament ** Review and implementation of the Concluding Document of the Twelfth Special Session of the General Assembly ** Review of the implementation of the recommendations and decisions adopted by the General Assembly at its tenth special session ** The risk of nuclear proliferation in the Middle East ** Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons Which May Be Deemed to Be Excessively Injurious or to Have Indiscriminate Effects ** Strengthening of security and cooperation in the Mediterranean region ** Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty ** Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on Their Destruction ** Promoting international cooperation on peaceful uses in the context of international security ** Brazilian-Argentine Agency for Accounting and Control of Nuclear Materials


Bureau

The following make up the bureau of the First Committee for the 77th Session of the General Assembly:


See also

*
United Nations General Assembly Second Committee The United Nations General Assembly Second Committee (also known as the Economic and Financial Committee or ECOFIN or C2) is one of the six main committees of the United Nations General Assembly. It deals with global finance and economic matte ...
*
United Nations General Assembly Third Committee The United Nations General Assembly Third Committee (also known as the Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Committee or SOCHUM or C3) is one of six main committees at the General Assembly of the United Nations. It deals with human rights, humanitar ...
*
United Nations General Assembly Fourth Committee The United Nations General Assembly Fourth Committee (also known as the Special Political and Decolonization Committee or SPECPOL or C4) is one of six main committees of the United Nations General Assembly. It deals with a diverse set of politic ...
*
United Nations General Assembly Fifth Committee The United Nations General Assembly Fifth Committee (also known as the Administrative and Budgetary Committee or C5) is one of six main committees at the United Nations General Assembly. It deals with internal United Nations administrative and bud ...
*
United Nations General Assembly Sixth Committee The United Nations General Assembly Sixth Committee (also known as the Legal Committee or C6) is one of six main committees of the General Assembly of the United Nations. It deals primarily with legal matters and is the primary forum for the cons ...


References


External links


Office for Disarmament Affairs - First Committee Webpage

First Committee for Disarmament and International Security

Six Committees of the United Nations General Assembly


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