Stephen D. Goose

Rwanda is only the latest example of what happens when small arms and light weapons are freely sold to countries plagued by ethnic, religious, and nationalist strife. These weapons cause the most death and destruction in local wars and are closely tied to human rights abuses and other violations of international law. Yet the world has focused predominantly on controlling the proliferation of major weapon systems. It is time to establish a viable mechanism to monitor and control small arms transfers. The United States should take the lead in this difficult but increasingly urgent task.