Non-Proliferation (1540 Committee)
Expected Council Action
In August, the chair of the 1540 Committee, Ambassador Eloy Alfaro de Alba (Panama), is scheduled to brief the Council on the work of the Committee.
Background and Key Recent Developments
Adopted in 2004, resolution 1540 aims to prevent non-state actors from obtaining access to weapons of mass destruction (individuals and sub-state groups are not covered under existing treaties dealing with nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons). It requires all states to prevent non-state actors from obtaining access to nuclear, chemical, or biological weapons and their delivery systems. Furthermore, it requires states to establish domestic controls to prevent the proliferation of such weapons.
On 30 November 2022, the Security Council unanimously adopted resolution 2663, extending the mandate of the 1540 Committee and its Group of Experts for ten years, until 30 November 2032. Resolution 2663 tasks the Committee with conducting two comprehensive reviews on the status of implementation of resolution 1540, one after five years (to be held before December 2027) and the other prior to the renewal of its mandate.
The most recent comprehensive review on the implementation of resolution 1540, which was published on 29 November 2022, and covered developments since 2016, says that while progress has been recorded, the resolution’s full implementation is a long-term task. It notes that, overall, member states have strengthened measures to prohibit non-state actors from manufacturing, acquiring, developing, transporting, or using nuclear, chemical, or biological weapons and their means of delivery. Some member states, however, have continued to face difficulties in fully implementing the resolution owing to several factors, including lack of adequate financial resources, technical expertise, legal frameworks, and implementation capabilities. In this regard, the report highlights the continued importance of the 1540 Committee in supporting member states in implementing resolution 1540 and facilitating assistance to that end.
Resolution 2663 also decides that the Chair of 1540 Committee shall brief the Council in the first quarter of each year. This year, due to an unprecedented delay in the appointment of the chairs of the Council’s subsidiary bodies until 29 May, the briefing could not be held in the first quarter. The new chair (Panama) has decided to hold the briefing in August. (For more information on the delay regarding subsidiary bodies, see our April 2025 In Hindsight.)
On 15 July, the Group of Experts (GoE) briefed the 1540 Committee on the status of assistance requests. Part of the Committee’s mandate is facilitating assistance to member states in implementing resolution 1540. Among other things, the Committee matches assistance requests from states with offers of assistance from other states, as well as from international, regional, and sub-regional organisations.
The Committee also discussed the organisation of the next 1540 National Points of Contact training programme, which is expected to take place in Latin America and the Caribbean. In 2024, two such training courses were held; the first was in Beijing, China, for member states in the Asia-Pacific region; and the second was in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for member states from the African region. These training programmes aim to enhance the understanding of participants on the scope and obligations of resolution 1540 and the implementation tools of the 1540 Committee.
Resolution 2663 also mandates the Committee to convene regular open briefings, at least once a year or as needed, for member states and international, regional and subregional organisations. The most recent open briefing took place on 9-10 October 2024. This year, it is yet to be scheduled.
Key Issues and Options
A key issue for the Council (and its 1540 Committee) is the need to continue to strengthen the efforts of states to implement resolution 1540. The Committee’s efforts to facilitate the provision of technical assistance to states are critical in this regard, as it links states to appropriate service providers, organises workshops for them on relevant topics, and shares information with them on capacity-development initiatives.
A current issue for the Committee is that three out of the nine expert positions in the GoE are vacant. The Committee will need to hold consultations to fill the vacant positions so that the GoE can carry out the full scope of its work as efficiently and expeditiously as possible.
Council members could use the meeting as an opportunity to express their support for the objectives of resolution 1540 and highlight the importance of its implementation. Members could also raise the need to address new proliferation risks arising from technological advances, including emerging technologies.
Council Dynamics
Council members support an active role for the Committee and its Group of Experts in engaging with member states to provide technical assistance and capacity development in implementing resolution 1540.
In recent years, some members have advocated for less committee oversight of the work of the Group of Experts (currently, proposals by the 1540 Committee’s Group of Experts must be approved by the committee members through a no-objection procedure). During open consultations on the comprehensive review of the implementation of resolution 1540 that were held in late May 2022, the US argued that the Group of Experts should have a clear mandate to do its work “without having to seek individual approval for each and every action it seeks to undertake”, adding that “no other subsidiary body of the Security Council is forced to operate under such self-defeating constraints”. Russia, however, believes that actions should be undertaken under the Committee’s strict direction and purview. In the last Council briefing on the Committee’s work on 26 March 2024, Russia cautioned against the Committee’s work being “used as a pretext for interfering in the internal affairs of States” and against it becoming “an instrument for such interference by being given control and oversight functions”.
| Security Council Resolutions | |
| 30 November 2022S/RES/2663 | This resolution extended the mandate of the 1540 Committee and its Group of Experts for ten years until 30 November 2032. |
| 28 April 2004S/RES/1540 | This resolution established the 1540 Committee and its mandate, affirmed that proliferation of nuclear weapons as well as the means of delivery constitutes a threat to international peace and security. |
