Arms trafficking

Arms trafficking is the illicit trade or transfer of firearms and other weapons. It includes unauthorized sales, diversion from legal supplies, and transfers that violate national or international law.

Arms diversion: The unauthorized redirection of weapons from their intended legal recipient or use. Legal stocks become illicit when weapons are diverted into unauthorized hands.
Small arms and light weapons: Portable firearms and related weapons designed for use by individuals or small groups. These weapons make up much of the traffic addressed by arms-control efforts.
Arms Trade Treaty: A United Nations treaty regulating international trade in conventional arms. It requires parties to assess certain export risks and prevent specified transfers.
Arms control: Policies and agreements that regulate or limit the development, possession, or transfer of weapons. Trafficking is addressed through the controls this broader field develops.
Arms broker: An intermediary who arranges or facilitates the sale or transfer of weapons. Brokers can connect suppliers and buyers across borders while obscuring who controls a deal.
Armed conflict: Organized, sustained violence between states or organized armed groups. Illicit supply can sustain combatants when lawful access is restricted.
United Nations Firearms Protocol: A protocol addressing illicit manufacturing of and trafficking in firearms, their parts, components, and ammunition. It establishes international measures for criminalization, marking, record-keeping, and cooperation.
Arms export control: Government rules governing the export of weapons and related goods. A lawful export system defines the permissions trafficking bypasses or violates.
End-user certificate: A document identifying the intended recipient and use of exported weapons. False or weak certificates can conceal a transfer's actual destination.
Organized crime: Continuing criminal activity carried out by structured groups for profit or power. Trafficking networks may overlap with other criminal enterprises and routes.

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