Friday, June 22, 2012

The UN Steps on Its Shoelaces

The U.N. Speaks: The Arms Trade Treaty Will Affect ‘Legally Owned Weapons', Heritage Foundation Foundry, June, 22, 2012. "Yesterday, the U.N. released its press kit for the July conference that will finalize the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty (ATT). The most interesting item in the kit is a lengthy paper by the U.N.’s Coordinating Action on Small Arms (CASA) program titled “The Impact of Poorly Regulated Arms Transfers on the Work of the UN.” This paper perpetuates the belief, on which much of the ATT is based, that the big problem the world faces is a lack of agreed standards on arms transfers. That’s wrong: The big problem the world faces in this regard is that many U.N. member states are dictatorships, supporters of terrorists, or simply incapable of controlling their own borders."

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Sen. Moran's Leadership on ATT

Senator Moran Speaks at Heritage on the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty, Heritage Foundation Foundry, June 21, 2012. "Yesterday, Senator Jerry Moran (R–KS) gave an important speech at The Heritage Foundation on the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), negotiations on which will open on July 2 in New York. Through letters to the Administration, legislation, and amendments, Moran has played the leading role in seeking to ensure, with his colleagues in both parties, that the ATT does not infringe on rights protected under the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Moran made a valuable contribution by pointing out that concerns about the ATT should not focus only on the Second Amendment. As he noted, the ATT will apply equally to dictatorships and democracies, a dangerous idea that implies that dictatorships have the same right to buy and sell weapons that democracies do. But in the context of the Second Amendment, the Senator noted that we should not be content with the Administration’s pledge not to negotiate a treaty that infringes on our rights. That is a step forward, but it is not enough. The Senator then set out four criteria that would put flesh on the bones of that pledge."

Thursday, June 14, 2012

Thirty Year On, Lessons from the Falklands

Falklands War: Lessons of Liberation Ring True for U.S. Today, Heritage Foundation Issue Brief #3639, June 14, 2012. "The Falklands War illustrates the fundamental point that, in international affairs, one should always treat one’s friends better than anyone else. But it also offers a number of lessons for America as it struggles to avoid the devastating effects of defense sequestration and to maintain a military that provides for the common defense."

Friday, June 8, 2012

No Responsibility Here!

Out of Touch and Out of Favor . . . U.S. Voters Turn Their Backs on Obama’s World in Washington, Yorkshire Post, June 8, 2012. "Washington inherently likes nothing better than spending other people’s money. That’s why it’s so regularly out of touch. The President has spent four years cheerleading big government. He’s not the only one suffering from that, but whether he likes it or not, he personifies Washington. And in November, Washington’s irresponsibility could end up being a very big story indeed."

The ATT Will Be Bad for the US-Taiwan Alliance

Arms Trade Treaty Could Jeopardize U.S. Ability to Provide for Taiwan’s Defense, Heritage Foundation Issue Brief #3634, June 8, 2012. "The U.N. Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) will be negotiated in July in New York. One reason to be concerned about the ATT is the risks that it poses to America’s ability to sell arms to Taiwan. The U.S. is legally—as well as strategically and morally—obliged to provide for Taiwan’s defense. It should neither sign nor ratify a treaty that would increase the difficulty of meeting that commitment."

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Terrorist Legitimation, UN-Style

Arms Trade Treaty Risks Increasing the Threat of Armed Terrorism, Heritage Foundation Issue Brief #3624, June 5, 2012. "The U.N. Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) will be negotiated at a conference held July 2–27, in New York. The ATT purports to seek, in part, to reduce the ability of terrorists to acquire conventional weapons. But as the U.N. has not defined terrorism, it is at best unclear how the ATT will achieve this aim. Moreover, if the U.N. negotiations follow precedent, the ATT will include a clause that legitimates the supply of arms to terrorists."

Monday, June 4, 2012

A Classic Aspirational Treaty

The Risks the Arms Trade Treaty Poses to the Sovereignty of the United States, Heritage Foundation Issue Brief #3622, June 4, 2012. "The U.N. Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) will be negotiated in July in New York. One reason to be concerned about the ATT is the risks it poses to U.S. sovereignty. Some of these risks are specific to the ATT, but the fundamental problem with the ATT is that it is an aspirational treaty and, as such, will impose constraints on the U.S. that will not in practice affect the dictatorial regimes at which the treaty is nominally aimed."