United Nations General Assembly Resolution A/69/39

by the United Nations

United Nations

A/RES/69/39

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General Assembly

Distr.: General 11 December 2014

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Sixty-ninth session
Agenda item 96 (y)

Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 2 December 2014

[on the report of the First Committee (A/69/440)]

69/39. Measures to prevent terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass destruction

The General Assembly,

Recalling its resolution 68/41 of 5 December 2013,

Recognizing the determination of the international community to combat terrorism, as evidenced in relevant General Assembly and Security Council resolutions,

Deeply concerned by the growing risk of linkages between terrorism and weapons of mass destruction, and in particular by the fact that terrorists may seek to acquire weapons of mass destruction,

Cognizant of the steps taken by States to implement Security Council resolution 1540 (2004) on the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, adopted on 28 April 2004,

Welcoming the entry into force on 7 July 2007 of the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism,^[1]

Welcoming also the adoption, by consensus, of amendments to strengthen the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material^[2] by the International Atomic Energy Agency on 8 July 2005,

Noting the support expressed in the Final Document of the Sixteenth Conference of Heads of State or Government of Non-Aligned Countries, which was held in Tehran from 26 to 31 August 2012,^[3] for measures to prevent terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass destruction,

Noting also that the Group of Eight, the European Union, the Regional Forum of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and others have taken into account in their deliberations the dangers posed by the likely acquisition by terrorists of weapons of mass destruction and the need for international combating it, and that the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism has been launched jointly by the Russian Federation and the United States of America,

Noting further the holding of the Nuclear Security Summit on 12 and 13 April 2010 in Washington, D.C., on 26 and 27 March 2012 in Seoul and on 24 and 25 March 2014 in The Hague,

Noting the holding of the high-level meeting on countering nuclear terrorism, with a focus on strengthening the legal framework, in New York on 28 September 2012,

Acknowledging the consideration of issues relating to terrorism and weapons of mass destruction by the Advisory Board on Disarmament Matters,^[4]

Noting the holding by the International Atomic Energy Agency of the International Conference on Nuclear Security: Enhancing Global Efforts, in Vienna from 1 to 5 July 2013, and taking note of the relevant resolutions adopted by the General Conference of the Agency at its fifty-eighth regular session,

Noting also the tenth anniversary of the Code of Conduct on the Safety and Security of Radioactive Sources, approved by the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency on 8 September 2003,

Taking note of the 2005 World Summit Outcome adopted at the high-level plenary meeting of the General Assembly on 16 September 2005^[5] and the adoption of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy^[6] on 8 September 2006,

Taking note also of the report of the Secretary-General submitted pursuant to paragraph 5 of resolution 68/41,^[7]

Mindful of the urgent need for addressing, within the United Nations framework and through international cooperation, this threat to humanity,

Emphasizing that progress is urgently needed in the area of disarmament and non-proliferation in order to maintain international peace and security and to contribute to global efforts against terrorism,

1. Calls upon all Member States to support international efforts to prevent terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery;

2. Appeals to all Member States to consider early accession to and ratification of the International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism;

3. Urges all Member States to take and strengthen national measures, as appropriate, to prevent terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass destruction, their means of delivery and materials and technologies related to their manufacture;

4. Encourages cooperation among and between Member States and relevant regional and international organizations for strengthening national capacities in this regard;

5. Requests the Secretary-General to compile a report on measures already taken by international organizations on issues relating to the linkage between the cooperation in fight against terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and to seek the views of Member States on additional relevant measures, including national measures, for tackling the global threat posed by the acquisition by terrorists of weapons of mass destruction and to report to the General Assembly at its seventieth session;

6. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its seventieth session, under the item entitled “General and complete disarmament”, the sub-item entitled “Measures to prevent terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass destruction”.

62nd plenary meeting
2 December 2014

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1. United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 2445, No. 44004.
2. Ibid., vol. 1456, No. 24631.
3. A/67/506-S/2012/752, annex I.
4. See A/59/361.
5. Resolution 60/1.
6. Resolution 60/288.
7. A/69/138 and Add.1.