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This exercise is an example of Spain's commitment to the appropriate management of conventional ammunition.

In the INTA´s Campus La Marañosa

August 31, 2021

This exercise is an example of Spain's commitment to the appropriate management of conventional ammunition

The ammunition expert validation exercise of the UN SaferGuard Program for Spanish-speaking candidates was held at INTA's Campus La Marañosa. The Spanish Verification Unit (UVE) of the Spanish Defense Staff has provided logistical support to the activity, a candidate and an observer.

Eleven candidates, four evaluators and two observers participated in the activity. The candidates had to demonstrate their technical knowledge of ammunition and the IATG (International Ammunition Technical Guidelines) in three activities: individual practical exercise of a storage scenario a risk management exercise and discussion of issues in a round-table format.

The UN General Assembly requested in 2008 to develop guidelines for proper ammunition management to ensure that the organization could provide high quality advice and support. In 2011, the first IATGs were developed and the UN SaferGuard Program was established. The Program is led by UNODA (Office for Disarmament Affairs), which oversees the updating and dissemination of the IATGs. The third version has recently been published, available in English only for the time being.

The UVE has provided technical advice on some of the IATG modules, in cooperation with the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean (UNLiREC) and the Ammunition Management Advisory Team (AMAT) of the 'Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining' (GICHD).

The activity was successfully carried out thanks to the support provided by the staff of the La Marañosa Campus, in cooperation with the UVE escort team, and was an excellent opportunity to show Spain's commitment to the proper management of conventional ammunition.

General Assembly resolution 72/55 establishes a rapid response mechanism through the UN SaferGuard program, which allows for the deployment of ammunition experts to assist requesting States in the management of ammunition stockpiles, or in the event of an incident.

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