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This publication addresses the issue of military spending from various angles by examining the impact of military expenditures on international security; the relationship between military spending and the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; the importance of gender perspectives in rethinking unconstrained military spending; and lessons learned from economic conversion movements. It has been published in support of the Sustainable Development Goals and the Secretary-General’s Agenda for Disarmament to promote renewed research and analysis on the relationship between military spending and economic and social …

This publication provides a historical survey of efforts within the United Nations to reduce military spending. Starting with the Charter, which envisages the maintenance of international peace and security with the least diversion of resources to arms, reducing military spending was actively pursued throughout the cold war period as a distinct objective within broader negotiations on general and complete disarmament. Separate and distinct efforts to pursue reductions in the military expenditures of the major Powers gave rise to a parallel effort to develop means for sharing information and comparing military spending between States. The resulting mechanism, the United Nations Report on Military Expenditures, continues to function as a means for promoting transparency on military matters. The reduction of military spending was also examined over a period of decades as a means of obtaining resources needed to meet the development objectives of the Organization. The 2030 Agenda for …

This publication was prepared to facilitate the discussions of the Group of Governmental Experts on the Operation and Further Development of the United Nations Standardized Instrument for Reporting Military Expenditures, which released its report in 2011. The paper argues for a reconsideration of the matrix, linking the Instrument to other activities on the nexus of security and development (such as security sector reform) and to other reporting obligations in order to increase its relevance. …

This brochure describes the intertwined notions of children's rights and the proliferation of arms from the perspectives of military expenditures, weapons of mass destruction, small arms and landmines. The brochure also contains information on avenues of disarmament action at the UN and useful addresses and websites on related topics. …

The publication contains the report of the Ad Hoc Panel on Military Budgeting, which held five sessions from 1979 to 1980. The panel was mandated to carry out a practical test of the proposed reporting instrument with the voluntary co-operation of States; to assess the results of the practical test; to develop recommendations for further refinement and implementation of the reporting instrument. …