Countering Illicit Small Arms and Light Weapons Trafficking: Strategies and Challenges

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INTRODUCTION 
 
 
 
 
 
The illicit trafficking of small arms and light weapons is a pressing 
transnational challenge, posing severe threats to global security and stability. 
This complex issue remains today undefeated, perpetuating armed conflicts and 
violence, fueling organized crime, and undermining socio-economic 
development. The ease of availability and transportation of these weapons 
exacerbate the problem, requiring comprehensive analysis and effective 
countermeasures. 
Traditionally it is the State who has the responsibility to prosecute criminals 
involved in this type of crime, but it is not always effective in doing so. Several 
supra-State organizations and institutions, therefore, have developed 
mechanisms to support this fight by establishing common standards, fostering 
cooperation and information exchange, but without decisive effects in 
completely eradicating trafficking. 
This research aims to provide a comprehensive examination of the various 
dimensions of small arms and light weapons trafficking, to contribute to the 
understanding of the issue and to offer insights into potential strategies to address 
this pressing concern. 
The study primarily relies on scholarly articles, reports, national laws, 
official documents, international and regional treaties and documents. These 
sources provide a foundation for the analysis and enable a thorough investigation 
of the subject matter. Additionally, empirical data, such as statistical information 
will be incorporated to support the arguments and findings. 
The research is organized in four chapters. The first chapter establishes the 
foundation of the research by exploring the terminology surrounding the issue, 
the sources of illicit weapons, the actors involved, the size of the illicit market, 
the cross-border transportation techniques, and the humanitarian and socio-
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economic impact. The second chapter provides an overview of the various small 
arms and light weapons instruments and mechanisms established at the 
international and at the regional levels. Among the regional ones, special 
emphasis is places on those concerning the European region. The third chapter 
provides an in-depth analysis of the regulatory frameworks in Italy and France. 
Finally, the fourth chapter identifies the weaknesses of the current regulatory 
framework, investigates strategies to address them, outlines their practical 
implications, and makes suggestions for the future.
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CHAPTER 1 
UNRAVELING ILLICIT TRAFFICK IN SMALL ARMS AND LIGHT 
WEAPONS: A TRANSNATIONAL CHALLENGE 
 
 
 
 
 
This chapter embarks on a comprehensive exploration of the issue of small 
arms and light weapons illicit trafficking. Through an in-depth examination of 
the complexities surrounding the terminology and a thorough investigation of its 
sources, actors, market size, transportation techniques, and the profound 
humanitarian and socio-economic impacts associated with the proliferation of 
these weapons, this chapter seeks to provide a comprehensive understanding of 
this pressing global challenge. 
 
 
Section 1.1: Terminology 
 
1.1.1 Defining “small arms and light weapons” 
 
There is no legal or universally accepted definition of small arms and light 
weapons. The first and most authoritative definition was introduced in 1997 by 
the United Nations Panel of Governmental Experts on Small Arms tasked by the 
United Nations General Assembly with producing a report on the issue (United 
Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 2019). The Panel defined them in 
Paragraphs 24, 25 and 26 of the report. 
Paragraph 24 states: 
Small arms and light weapons range from clubs, knives and machetes to those 
weapons just below those covered by the United Nations Register of 
Conventional Arms, for example, mortars below the caliber of 100 mm. (United 
Nations Panel of Governmental Experts on Small Arms, 1997)
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Paragraph 25 introduces a differentiation in terms of portability, stating that: 
Broadly speaking, small arms are those weapons designed for personal use, and 
light weapons are those designed for use by several persons serving as a crew. 
(United Nations Panel of Governmental Experts on Small Arms, 1997) 
 
Paragraph 26 provides then a list of the “types of small arms and light 
weapons actually being used in conflicts being dealt with by the United Nations” 
(United Nations Panel of Governmental Experts on Small Arms, 1997, p. 11): 
Small arms: 
(i) Revolvers and self-loading pistols; 
(ii) Rifles and carbines; 
(iii) Sub-machine-guns; 
(iv) Assault rifles; 
(v) Light machine-guns; 
Light weapons: 
(i) Heavy machine-guns; 
(ii) Hand-held under-barrel and mounted grenade launchers; 
(iii) Portable anti-aircraft guns; 
(iv) Portable anti-tank guns, recoilless rifles; 
(v) Portable launchers of anti-tank missile and rocket systems; 
(vi) Portable launchers of anti-aircraft missile systems; 
(vii) Mortars of calibers of less than 100 mm. (United Nations Panel of 
Governmental Experts on Small Arms, 1997) 
 
The more recent International Instrument to Enable States to Identify and 
Trace, in a Timely and Reliable Manner, Illicit Small Arms and Light Weapons 
(also referred to as the International Tracing System) proposes the same list and 
classification in terms of portability of small arms and light weapons and defines 
them in Paragraph 4 as: 
Any man-portable lethal weapon that expels or launches, is designed to expel 
or launch, or may be readily converted to expel or launch a shot, bullet or 
projectile by the action of an explosive, excluding antique small arms and light 
weapons or their replicas. (International Instrument to Enable States to Identify 
and Trace, in a Timely and Reliable Manner, Illicit Small Arms and Light 
Weapons, 2005) 
 
A description of each small arm and light weapon listed in the 1997 Report 
of the Panel of Governmental Experts on Small Arms and in the 2005 
International Tracing Instrument is provided by the Small Arms & Light 
Weapons Guide, elaborated in 2021 by the Bonn International Center for 
Conversion (Bonn International Center for Conversion, 2021).
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Table 1: Description of small arms and light weapons (Bonn International Center for Conversion, 2021) 
Revolvers Hand-held arms with a revolving cylinder typically of 
five to nine chambers, manually loaded with cartridges. 
Expended cartridge cases remain in the cylinder until 
manually unloaded. 
Self-loading pistols Hand-held arms which use part of the energy produced 
by burning cartridge powder to expel the used cartridge 
from the chamber, cock the hammer and load a new 
cartridge in the chamber. Differently from revolvers, it 
does not need to be done manually. Cartridges are 
usually fed from a box magazine, located in the pistol's 
handle. 
Rifles Shoulder-fired long guns with a series of spiral grooves 
cut inside the barrel imparting spin to the projectile. 
Some have a detachable magazine for the cartridges and 
others have integral magazines. 
Carbines Similar to a rifle but with a shorter barrel. 
Sub-machine guns Hand-held, short-barrelled machine guns that fire 
pistol-caliber ammunitions. 
Assault rifles Subcategory of rifles that uses an intermediate cartridge 
and a detachable magazine. 
Light machine guns Fully automatic mounted or portable arms, designed to 
fire rifle bullets in quick succession from an 
ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, at a rate of 
several hundred rounds per minute.
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Heavy machine 
guns 
Similar to light machine guns, but with a greater caliber 
(between 12.7 millimetres and 20 millimetres). They 
are typically mounted on vehicles or ground mounts. 
Hand-held under-
barrel and mounted 
grenade launchers 
Arms that fire grenades (a small shell, filled with high 
explosives or other agents, such as tear gas or 
incendiary filling). 
Portable anti-
aircraft guns 
Used by the infantry to engage air targets. Their 
effectiveness is generally limited since the speed and 
altitude of modern jet aircraft limit target opportunities. 
Moreover, critical systems of aircraft designed to attack 
targets on the ground are often protected by armors. 
Ammunition and shells fired by portable anti-aircraft 
guns are usually fitted with different types of fuses 
(barometric, time-delay, or proximity) to send 
exploding metal fragments into the area of the airborne 
target. 
Portable anti-tank 
guns 
Guns designed to destroy armored vehicles. In order to 
penetrate the armor, they fire shells of smaller caliber 
than regular indirect-fire artillery guns, propelling them 
at a higher velocity. 
Recoilless rifles Arms that are capable of firing artillery-type shells at a 
range and velocity comparable to that of a light cannon, 
although they are typically used to fire larger shells at 
lower velocities and ranges. 
Portable launchers 
of anti-tank missile 
and rocket systems 
Guided missiles designed to destroy armored tanks and 
other armored fighting vehicles. They range in size 
from shoulder-launched arms which can be transported 
by a single soldier, to larger tripod-mounted arms which
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require a squad or a team to transport and fire, to missile 
systems mounted on vehicles and aircraft. 
Portable launchers 
of anti-aircraft 
missile systems 
Guided arms designed to launch missiles surface-to-air. 
They pose a threat to low-flying aircraft, especially 
helicopters. 
Mortars Muzzle-loading indirect firearms that fire shells at low 
velocities, short ranges, and high-arching ballistic 
trajectories, enabling to engage targets outside the line 
of sight, such as behind hills. When their caliber is less 
than 100 millimetres, they are considered as falling 
under the category of light weapons. 
 
The term small arms and light weapons is often used interchangeably and 
synonymously with the term firearms, defined in Article 3 of the Protocol 
Against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, their Parts and 
Components and Ammunition (also referred to as the Firearms Protocol) as: 
Any portable barrelled weapon that expels, is designed to expel or may be 
readily converted to expel a shot, bullet or projectile by the action of an 
explosive, excluding antique firearms or their replicas. (Protocol against the 
Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, their Parts and 
Components and Ammunitions, 2001) 
 
The two terms emerged in the ‘90s in the context of two parallel United 
Nations processes. The term small arms and light weapons emerged in relation 
to the process to counter arms proliferation and to prevent conflict, culminated 
in the United Nations Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate 
the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons, adopted in 2001 and 
complemented by the 2005 International Instrument to Enable States to Identify 
and Trace, in a Timely and Reliable Manner, Illicit Small Arms and Light 
Weapons. The term firearms emerged in relation to the process to counter 
criminal use of arms and prevent crimes, culminated in the Firearms Protocol 
adopted in 2001. The idea was to have two different terms to refer on the one