SPECIAL
SECURITY CONCERNS OF SMALL ISLAND STATES OF THE CARIBBEAN
(Adopted at the fourth plenary session held on June 4,
2002)
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY,
HAVING SEEN the Annual Report of the Permanent Council
(AG/doc.4059/02), in particular the section on the matters entrusted to the
Committee on Hemispheric Security;
RECALLING its resolutions “Special Security Concerns
of Small Island States” [AG/RES. 1497 (XXVII-O/97), AG/RES. 1567
(XXVIII-O/98), AG/RES. 1640 (XXIX-O/99)], and [AG/RES. 1802 (XXXI-O/01)],
and “Promotion of Security in the Small Island States” [AG/RES. 1410
(XXVI-O/96)];
REITERATING:
That the security of small island states has peculiar characteristics
which render these states specially vulnerable and susceptible to risks and
threats of a multidimensional and trans-national nature, involving
political, economic, social, health, environmental, and geographic factors;
That these security threats assume great significance in the security
agenda of small island states because of the size of these states, their
openness, and their limited capacity to manage these threats;
That there is a pressing need for a more effective management
mechanism to assist the small island states in dealing with such
multidimensional and trans-national threats to their security in a
co-ordinated and co-operative manner;
That high-level meetings on the special security concerns of small
island states contribute to confidence- and security-building in the
Hemisphere; and
That the security threats experienced by the small island states also
affect, to varying degrees, other states of the Hemisphere;
MINDFUL of the potential negative impact of acts of terrorism on the
stability and security of all states in the Hemisphere, particularly in the
small and vulnerable island states;
AWARE that the small island states are deeply concerned
about the possible threats posed to the economies and maritime environment
of small island states should a ship transporting toxic nuclear waste have
an accident or be the target of a terrorist attack while transiting the
Caribbean Sea and other sea-lanes of communication in the Hemisphere;
RECOGNIZING that multilateral co-operation, through the pooling of
finite national resources and capacities, is the most effective approach for
responding to and managing the predominant trans-national and
multidimensional security threats and concerns of the small island states in
the Hemisphere;
RECALLING:
The support expressed by the Heads of State and Government at the
Third Summit of the Americas (Quebec City, April 2001) for the efforts of
the small island developing states to address their special security
concerns, and of the recognition accorded to the multidimensional nature of
security for the smallest and most vulnerable states in the Hemisphere;
and
That at the Third Summit of the Americas, the Heads of State and
Government mandated the holding of a Special Conference on Security;
and
CONSIDERING:
That the special security concerns of the small island states have an
integral place in the security agenda of the entire Hemisphere and will
therefore be considered at this Special Conference; and
That member states have repeatedly demonstrated their willingness to
dialogue and cooperate on security matters and that there is, in the
Hemisphere, an enhanced atmosphere of confidence and transparency,
RESOLVES:
1.
To convene the Second High-Level Meeting on the Special Security
Concerns of Small Island States with a view to:
a.
identifying and discussing the special security threats and concerns
of the small island states in the Hemisphere;
b.
considering appropriate multilateral strategies to address these
threats and concerns in an effective and coordinated
manner; and
c.
adopting a management model or better coordinating approaches through
which these special security threats and concerns of small island states can
be appropriately and adequately addressed.
2.
To instruct the Permanent Council to formalize the site, agenda, and
date of the Second High-Level Meeting with a view to holding it prior to the
Special Conference on Security, and to carry out the other necessary
preparations for conducting the said meeting, including the preparation of a
draft security management model or recommendations for better coordinating
approaches to be presented for consideration and adoption at the said
High-Level Meeting.
3.
To instruct the Permanent Council to remain seized of the issues
which impact the security of small island states.
4.
To instruct the Permanent Council:
a.
To discuss the concerns of the small island states regarding the
transhipment of nuclear waste through the Caribbean Sea;
b.
To evaluate the potential threat posed by such transhipment through
the Caribbean Sea; and
c.
To consider conducting a study, to be undertaken under the
coordination of the Secretary General, on defence and security planning for
small island states in order to adequately respond to an incident or a
terrorist attack on nuclear waste-bearing ships crossing the Caribbean Sea. For this purpose, the Secretary General shall invite the
relevant regional, hemispheric and international organizations and
institutions.
5.
To request the Permanent Council to transmit the conclusions and
recommendations of the Second High-Level Meeting to the preparatory body of
the Special Conference on Security as a contribution to the preparations for
that Conference.
6.
To instruct the General Secretariat to provide the necessary
technical and secretariat resources for the preparation and holding of the
said High-Level Meeting, within the funds allocated in the program-budget
and other resources.
7.
To request the Secretary General to continue to support the efforts
of the small island states to address their security concerns, including
raising public awareness of these concerns.
8.
To request the Secretary General to transmit this resolution to other
interested multilateral institutions, including the Association of Caribbean
States, the Caribbean Community, the United Nations, the United Nations
Development Programme, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the
Caribbean, the Central American Integration System, and the British
Commonwealth.
9.
To request the Secretary General to report to the General Assembly at
its thirty-third regular session on the implementation of this resolution.
10.
To request the Permanent Council to report to the General Assembly at
its thirty-third regular session on the implementation of this resolution.
