Arms embargo is a key tool in the international system to prevent illicit arms transfers and destabilizing conflict. Yet it is often a weak and ineffective instrument, and the UN Sanctions Committees require better support from Member States to improve verification methods and techniques.
Unlike other transport modes, air-based shipments are difficult to intercept. Charter aircraft and cargo firms that are repeatedly used to violate UN arms embargoes, however, are often not grounded or shut down and simply change their names. This means that air trafficking is a significant challenge for the enforcement of embargoes, especially in regions that are sparsely populated, prone to banditry, or controlled by competing authorities where land delivery is difficult.
States of all export capacities break embargoes when the perceived economic, political or strategic benefits outweigh the costs and risks of noncompliance. They may exploit the power asymmetry between embargoed and sanctioning states to gain access to resources, shore up military alliances, increase interoperability within embargoed armed forces, or change the balance of power in their region.
Multilateral arms embargoes also fail to stop the transfer of SALW (small arms and light weapons), which are much easier to divert or traffick because of their low price, high utility, and widespread availability. As a result, SALW-facilitated conflict is often more chaotic and has higher incidence of human rights violations than other types of conflict. This is a critical reason why it is essential to improve the effectiveness of embargoes on SALW.