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The first-ever regional peer review exercise on export controls in Southeast Asia and the Pacific was hosted by the Philippines with Singapore
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The exercise compared implementation of UNSCR 1540 between the Philippines and Singapore
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It generated interest among Indo-Pacific states, donor countries, and international stakeholders
The first-ever regional peer review exercise on export controls in Southeast Asia and the Pacific was hosted by the Philippines with Singapore recently.
The tabletop exercise held in Manila last week was hosted by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), under the UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1540.
The exercise compared implementation of UNSCR 1540 between the Philippines and Singapore. It was presented by experts from both countries’ border security and export control authorities and moderated by the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA).
UNSCR 1540 was co-sponsored by the Philippines, with France and the UK, in 2004 when the country last occupied a non-permanent seat in the Security Council. The resolution was unanimously adopted. UNSCR 1540 calls on UN Member States to adopt and enforce appropriate laws and other effective measures to prevent the proliferation of chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons and their means of delivery to non-state actors.
Representing Japan as observer to the exercise was the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Amanda Cowl, UNODA 1540 regional coordinator for Asia, said the exercise generated interest among Indo-Pacific states, donor countries, and international stakeholders. Being a milestone in UNSCR 1540 implementation, the conversations that followed the two-day workshop have a “rippling effect” in the region, she said.
The Philippine side was represented by the DFA, the Department of Trade and Industry Strategic Trade Management Office, the Department of Justice, the Bureau of Customs and the Philippine Coast Guard.
DFA Undersecretary for Multilateral Affairs and International Economic Relations Charles Jose said the peer review exercise presented a good opportunity to “take stock, measure and assess, where we are, where we wish to go and what future directions to take to get there.”
“This exercise is not meant to shame anyone or place any participating state on the spot. Rather, it is a multilateral mechanism that allows us to identify points of synergy where we can work together towards a more efficient, effective and impactful implementation of UNSCR 1540,” Jose said.
The second and concluding phase of the peer-review exercise will be hosted by Singapore within the year.
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