OAS holds consultations on UN GGE

Inter-American Committee Against Terrorism (CICTE) of the Organization of American States (OAS) conducted regional consultations on the work of the UN Group of Governmental Experts (GGE). Consultations involved representatives of OAS member States, as well as civil society, academia and the business sector, and were attended by both Ambassador Guilherme Patriota of Brazil, Chair of the GGE, and Ambassador Jürg Lauber of Switzerland, Chair of the Open-ended Working Group (OEWG). During her keynote address, High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Ms Izumi Nakamitsu reminded that the regional consultations were set by the Resolution A/RES/73/266 of the UN General Assembly in order to raise awareness of the GGE work but also to allow GGE to understand the work and the priorities of different regions; she commended the work of the OAS on building capacities, developing national strategies, and adopting six CBMs, and invited interested non-governmental organizations to apply for accreditation to the intersessional multi-stakeholder meeting of the OEWG.