WASHINGTON, DC – The Organization of American States (OAS) will hold from February 6 to 8, 2012, a seminar on the illicit trafficking of firearms with the participation of the Organization’s Secretary General, José Miguel Insulza; the Alternate Representative of the United States to the OAS and Vice Chair of the OAS Committee on Hemispheric Security, Giovanni Snidle; and the Director of the Inter-American Defense College, Admiral Jeffrey A. Lemmons.
The gathering responds to a resolution of the OAS General Assembly seeking to promote an agenda for the reduction in small arms trafficking in the Americas. It will be divided in two parts: an official meeting of the Committee on Hemispheric Security, and a series of discussion sessions using diverse learning modalities to expand participation and involvement by students and participants in the areas of debate.
The sessions will feature an examination of the multifaceted regional priorities to confront the illicit trafficking of arms in the Americas, with special emphasis on the role of domestic and international actors, fulfillment and compliance with laws and international treaties, and the great variety of activities related to illicit trafficking that threaten hemispheric security.
The inaugural session will be held in the Hall of the Americas at OAS headquarters on February 6 at 2:00 EST (19:00 GMT). The sessions of the seminar on February 7 and 8 will be held on the campus of the Inter-American Defense College.
