War is necessary for peace. This saying seems true seeing the precarious trend in escalating international arm trade. It is estimated that yearly, over 1.5 trillion dollars are spent on military expenditures worldwide (2.7% of World GDP). Total world spending amounted to $1.74 trillion USD in 2011.The arms trade is a major cause of human rights abuses. Some governments spend more on military expenditure than on social development, communications infrastructure and health combined. While every nation has the right and the need to ensure its security, in these changing times, arms requirements and procurements may need to change too.

The arms trade is one of the most corrupt trades in the world, fueling conflict and poverty. Since the early 1990s there has been an effort to review and develop arms-transfer principles and codes of conduct to ensure that arms are not sold to human rights violators. The US, EU and others have developed some codes, but they are fraught with problems, loopholes, lack of transparency and are open to corruption. There is a proposed international arms trade treaty to overcome these limitations. However, for various political and profit reasons, some nations seem unwilling to agree to a code of conduct. Proposals are growing stronger for an arms trade treaty.

Each year, around $45-60 billion worth of arms sales are agreed. Most of these sales (something like 75%) are to developing countries. Aside to security reasons, arms are principal cause of grave violation of human rights in most of countries of world. Human rights groups claim one person dies every minute worldwide as a result of armed violence and a treaty is needed to halt the uncontrolled flow of arms and ammunition that fuels wars, atrocities and rights abuses.

Formerly, 193 member states United Nations met in a final push to end years of discussions and to formulate a binding international treaty to end the lack of regulation over cross-border conventional arms sales.

The point of an arms trade treaty is to set standards for all cross-border transfers of conventional weapons. It would also create binding requirements for states to review all cross-border arms contracts to ensure arms will not be used in human rights abuses, terrorism or violations of humanitarian law.

Despite, strong opposition offered by arm manufacturing companies and massive arm trading countries the UN has to end human rights violation by ratifying this treaty. It would be a noticeable stance on the part of international community, agreeing the draft that helps the world further towards long-lasting peace and tranquility having taken all initiatives that discourage the storage of mass destructive arms.