Confidence and Regional Security Building

There is a continued and growing threat to sustainable development from the uncontrolled proliferation, possession and production of major conventional armaments. There is also an increasing awareness in the international community that has risen out of the development of ongoing conventional disarmament work in the area of ATT, landmines and small arms.

The Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy proposes an international initiative on reviving and globalising conventional confidence and security building and disarmament, with a Middle East and Africa focus to further sustainable development.

The project is intended to adopt an up-scalable, phased approach and include stakeholders who are regional or military experts or from academia, government or NGOs. Although the project is intended to be applicable globally it will include specific regional feasibility-case studies, probably focussing on Sub-Saharan Africa and the Cambodia/Thailand border region. This will build on Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy's Conferences on a Middle East Weapons of Mass Destruction Free Zone which looked at regional security and in particular the implications, obstacles and possibilities of such a zone. The project is part of Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy's Disarmament and Globalisation research programme and builds upon previous work.

• Project Outline (PDF) – Document, including project summary, rationale and objectives
• "Reviving and Globalising Conventional Disarmament and Confidence Building" (PDF) – Project Concept paper by Paul Schulte
• Weapons Reduction Treaty Provisions (PDF) – Key excerpts from selected treaties

• Martin Butcher (ATT Lead, Oxfam). Martin is a policy advisor for Oxfam on Arms and the Arms Trade Treaty. He was formerly interim Director and Senior Visiting Fellow at British American Security Information Council (BASIC).
• Dan Plesch (Director, Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy, SOAS). Dan has been involved in NGO leadership and landmines and small arms since the 1980s.
• Paul Schulte (Non-Resident Senior Associate, Carnegie Europe and Carnegie Nuclear Policy). Paul is also Senior Visiting Fellow for the Disarmament and Globalisation Programme in the Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy, SOAS, and Senior Visiting Fellow in the Centre for Defence Studies at King's College London.
• Kevin Miletic Project Manager and PhD candidate at the Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy, SOAS University of London