“Some might complain that nuclear disarmament is little more than a dream. But that ignores the very tangible benefits disarmament would bring for all humankind,” Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said at the meeting, held on the margins of the Assembly’s high-level General Debate.

“Its success would strengthen international peace and security. It would free up vast and much-needed resources for social and economic development. It would advance the rule of law. It would spare the environment and help keep nuclear materials from terrorist or extremist groups. And it would remove a layer of fear that clouds all of human existence.”

In particular, Mr. Ban appealed to nuclear-weapon States to intensify their efforts to cooperate with the international community and move towards disarmament.

“Today, I once again call upon the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to demonstrate its commitment towards verifiable de-nuclearization,” he said. “I urge the Islamic Republic of Iran to fulfil its pledge to enhance the transparency of its nuclear programme.”

The Secretary-General also urged countries that have not yet done so to accede to the UN-backed Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) as well as the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT).

Having entered into force in 1970, the NPT aims to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology, to promote cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, and to further the goal of achieving nuclear disarmament. The CTBT bans all nuclear explosions in all environments, for military or civilian purposes. It was adopted by the General Assembly in September 1996 but has not yet entered into force.

Mr. Ban stressed that he would continue to explore ways to advance disarmament efforts and support existing ones, including the five-point plan he put forward in 2008 that includes recommendations on increasing security, verification, establishing a legal framework for nuclear disarmament, transparency and conventional weapons.

The President of the General Assembly, John Ashe, reminded States of the link between the post-2015 development agenda and nuclear disarmament, emphasizing that less resources to weapons stockpiles translates into more resources for development.

“As we put time, resources and energy into maintaining and expanding this ever increasing weaponry complex, we divert resources from education, healthcare, poverty reduction, and the overall goal to move towards more sustainable development,” he said.

“I urge you to devote part of the resources made available by the implementation of disarmament and arms limitation agreements to economic and social development.”

Mr. Ashe noted that while the General Assembly has repeatedly stated its commitment to nuclear disarmament through numerous resolutions, treaties and initiatives, concrete and meaningful progress has not been achieved yet. In this context, he urged Member States to renew and strengthen their commitment to achieve this goal.

“Today’s historic high-level meeting provides an opportunity to honour the vision of the Millennium Declaration and to renew our commitment to a world free of fear,” he said. “Building on today’s meeting and the work many of you are already doing, we can make significant progress – to advancing the agenda before us and to creating a world that honours what we all truly value: security, prosperity and peace and human well-being.”

The negotiations from 18-28 March are an opportunity for states to agree rules to end irresponsible arms transfers across borders that fuel grave abuses of human rights. This is an acid test for states to demonstrate their commitment to human rights and humanitarian law.

“Syria, Mali, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sri Lanka are just a few recent examples where the world bore witness to the horrific human cost of a reckless global arms trade steeped in secrecy,” said Salil Shetty, Amnesty International’s Secretary General.

“It shouldn’t take millions more dying and lives destroyed before leaders show some backbone and take action to adopt global standards to effectively control international arms transfers. They have this historic opportunity to save lives – they need to seize it and stop arms from fuelling atrocities.”

The nine-day ATT conference at the UN follows on from last July when UN negotiations ended without an agreement due to delaying tactics by a handful of states opposed to its goals. In particular, the USA was reluctant to do a deal before the presidential elections. But last November, 157 states voted in favour of returning to the negotiating table this month to finalize the treaty text.

For almost two decades, Amnesty International has been at the forefront of efforts to win a legally binding treaty grounded in international human rights and humanitarian law. Previous attempts before World War Two to forge an arms trade treaty collapsed in part because of the absence of such standards.

Existing UN arms embargoes are only imposed after atrocities have been documented. Because of the lack of agreed systems of regulating arms transfers, they mostly fail to stop the supply of weapons and munitions that continue to fuel atrocities and serious violations of human rights on a massive scale.

That is why it is so important for states to take responsibility for the arms they supply and include a Golden Rule in the treaty. States should assess any proposed transfer to see if there is a substantial risk the arms will be used to commit or facilitate serious human rights violations. If there is such a risk, the transfer should not take place.

“No government or political leader admits publicly that it is acceptable to aid those who commit crimes and human rights abuses – whether in conflict or peacetime – but since the treaty talks began no rule has appeared in the draft texts to prohibit putting arms into the hands of such perpetrators,” said Brian Wood, Amnesty International’s Head of Arms Control and Human Rights.

“Around the world, people are now watching this process hoping their political leaders will not fail them – survivors of armed violence and their communities are crying out for a strong Arms Trade Treaty with clear, universal rules for human rights protection at its core.”

In a briefing released last week, Amnesty International singled out the five permanent members of the UN Security Council – China, France, Russia, the UK and the USA – as shouldering the greatest burden in making a strong treaty a reality. They are charged with maintaining international peace and security, yet in 2010 they accounted for approximately 60 per cent of the more than US$70 billion annual trade in conventional weapons. Their economic interests are growing as the trade is expected to reach US$100 billion annually in the next few years.

“The question of the arms embargo was raised by some members of the European Council. We agreed to task our foreign ministers to assess the situation as a matter of priority already at their informal meeting next week in Dublin, and to develop common positions.”

The lastest development comes amid calls by France and Britain to lift an embargo on supplying weapons to the Syrian opposition with President Francois Hollande warning that France could do it alone if no EU agreement is reached.

The European Union is divided over the issue, with some fearing that sending more weapons to Syria could further escalate the  two-year conflict.

Meanwhile, the Syrian Revolution 2011 Facebook page,  has called on syrians to take to the streets after Friday prayers under the rallying cry “Two years of sacrifice towards victory” as the syrian government beefed up security measures.

The conflict erupted in March 2011 when protesters inspired by Arab world uprisings took to the streets  across Syria calling for freedom.

At the same time, the commander of the rebel Free Syrian Army vowed to continue fighting until Assad’s “criminal” regime is gone, AP reported.

“Dear friends, the Free Syrian Army (fighters) will not give up.”

The United Nations humanitarian chief today urged the international community to do more to end the crisis in Syria which is now entering its third year.

The call came as Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Valerie Amos wrapped up a two-day visit to Turkey, where she spoke with Syrian refugees in the south-eastern Kilis Province.

“I met families who fled their homes more than 18 months ago. They are in despair. They feel abandoned by the international community. They all want the same thing: the conflict to end so that they can go home,”

As part of her visit, Ms. Amos also met in Ankara with the Turkish Deputy Prime Minister, Besir Atalay, and Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, as well as other Government officials and senior humanitarian officials, including the President of the Turkish Red Crescent Society (KIZILAY), Ahmet Lutfi Akar.

Syria has been wracked by violence since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began in March 2011. Up to 70,000 people have died, more than 1 million have fled to neighbouring countries, 2 million have been internally displaced and up to 4 million are in need of humanitarian assistance.

In a presidential statement, the 15-member Council said that the Conference should be conducted in an “inclusive manner involving the full participation of all segments of Yemeni society, including representatives from the South and other regions, and the full and effective participation of youth and women.”

Yemen has been undergoing a democratic transition, with a Government of National Unity under the leadership of President Abdrabuh Mansour Hadi, who came to power in an election in February 2012 following protests that led to the resignation of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

The national dialogue is meant to feed into a constitution-making progress, and pave the way for general elections to be held in 2014.

In a statement, the Council cautioned against interference from the former regime, former opposition, and others “who do not adhere to the guiding principles of the Implementation Mechanism Agreement for the transition process,” including former president Saleh and former vice president Ali Salim Al-Beidh.

It was also concerned about reports of money and weapons being brought into Yemen from outside for the purpose of undermining the transition.

The Council said it is ready to “consider further measures,” including under Article 41 of the UN Charter, if actions aimed at undermining the Government of National Unity and the political transition continue.

Article 41 falls under Chapter VII of the Charter, which deals with threats to the peace, breaches of the peace and acts of aggression. It states that the Council may decide what measures – not involving the use of armed force – are to be employed to give effect to its decisions, and it may call on UN Member States to apply such measures.

These may include complete or partial interruption of economic relations and of rail, sea, air, postal, telegraphic, radio, and other means of communication, and the severance of diplomatic relations.

Last week the UN Special Envoy for Yemen, Jamal Benomar, said that the situation in the country remains fragile and many tasks lie ahead for the transition to succeed.

“While progress has been made and the transition remains largely on track, it is clear that there has been active resistance to the transition,” Benomar said, adding that “it is clear to whom these are attributable to.”

The Council also urged the international community to continue support for Yemen. The next Friends of Yemen meeting is slated for 7 March in London. At the last meeting in September in New York, participants pledged $1.5 billion, in addition to $6.4 billion already pledged, to support the two-year transition process in Yemen.

“A number of rebel groups and various pro-government militias have become more active in recent weeks in the capital city of Bangui and across the country,” said the UNICEF Representative for CAR, Souleymane Diabate. “Reliable sources have informed us that children are newly being recruited among their ranks. These reports are of serious concern.”

“Our team on the ground is working with partners to monitor, verify, and respond to grave violations of child rights, including recruitment into armed groups – those at greater risk are children who have lost their homes, are separated from their families or were formerly associated with armed groups,” Mr. Diabate added.

According to UNICEF, even before the latest round of violence in CAR erupted in December last year, about 2,500 children – both girls and boys – were associated with multiple armed groups, including self-defence groups, in CAR. The UN agency estimates that this number will rise because of the recent conflict.

Over the past weeks, widespread looting and violence occurred in the country as an alliance of rebel groups known as ‘Séléka’ attacked several towns in the northeast and threatened to march on Bangui. This week, the group reportedly halted their advance on the capital and agreed to start peace talks in Gabon.

CAR has a history of political instability and recurring armed conflict. State authority is weak in many parts of the country, which are largely controlled by rebel groups and criminal armed groups, according to the UN Department of Political Affairs (DPA).

Coupled with ethnic tensions in the north, frequent armed incursions by rebel elements from neighbouring countries and the presence of members of the armed Ugandan group known as the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), have added to insecurity and instability in CAR, which also has 170,000 people displaced internally.

UNICEF said more than 300,000 children have already been affected by the violence in CAR and its consequences, including through recruitment, family separation, sexual violence, forced displacement and having limited access to education and health facilities.

In particular, the agency is highly concerned about the involvement of youth under 18 years of age who may be forced to fight, carry supplies, perform other support roles and be abused as sex slaves by armed groups.

“Recent commitments under international law by the Government and some rebel groups to keep children out of the fighting must be respected,” said Mr. Diabate. “All violations must stop. It is critical that everything is done to protect these children and keep their families safe.”

UNICEF has worked in CAR since 2007 with both the Government and rebel factions to secure the release of more than 1,000 girls and boys from armed groups and self-defence groups and support their reintegration into families and communities.

However, the volatile security situation has hampered the delivery of humanitarian assistance to affected communities and has led UNICEF to relocate 14 international staff and consultants last week. The agency has established an operational crisis centre for CAR in the city of Yaounde, Cameroon, where it said it will continue to work with partners to conduct emergency activities.

In relation to the latest violence, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the Security Council have condemned the attacks involving ‘Seleka’ and called for a halt hostilities. They have also called on both the Government and the rebels to resolve the current crisis through dialogue, and to abide by the 2008 Libreville Comprehensive Peace Agreement, which was signed by the Government and the three main rebel groups and which helped bring an end to conflicts inside CAR.

The Secretary-General’s Special Representative and Head of the UN Integrated Peacebuilding Office in CAR (BINUCA), Margaret Vogt, has remained in close dialogue with the key parties and has offered support to political negotiations.

“I am extremely concerned about the continued violence in Syria, in particular the significant deterioration in Aleppo and its impact on the civilian population,” said the UN Military Adviser, Lieutenant General Babacar Gaye, who is currently serving as the head of the UN Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS).

“I urge the parties to protect civilians and respect their obligations under international humanitarian law,” he added in an UNSMIS statement. “Civilians must not be subjected to shelling and use of heavy weapons.”

Syria has been wracked by violence, with an estimated 17,000 people, mostly civilians, killed since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began some 17 months ago.

Over recent days, there have been reports of an escalation in violence in many towns and villages, as well as the country’s two biggest cities, Damascus and Aleppo, with the latter reportedly the centre of intense combat between Government and opposition forces, involving both aerial bombardments and heavy weaponry.

Following reports of shortages of food, gas and electricity, the United Nations is preparing to deliver food assistance to some 28,000 people in Aleppo. The International Committee of the Red Cross and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent estimate that some 200,000 people have fled the city and the surrounding areas because of the increase in fighting.

“I call on all parties to take all necessary steps to open a dialogue as the only way to alleviate the suffering of civilians and bring this conflict to an end,” Lieutenant General Gaye said.

“More fighting is not the answer. Further militarization of this conflict will only perpetuate the devastation and prolong the suffering. A sectarian civil war would also gravely imperil Syria’s neighbours,” Ban told reporters at United Nations Headquarters in New York.

He said the “tragic and intolerable” situation in Syria was foremost on his mind during his just-concluded visits to China, south-eastern Europe and London, where he met with the Joint Special Envoy for the UN and the League of Arab States for the Syrian Crisis, Kofi Annan.

Annan is working for a peaceful resolution to the conflict, but he needs the international community’s united and concrete support to succeed, said the Secretary-General.

Ban noted that the Syrian Government is adding to its “brutal crackdown” by attacking heavily populated areas with fighter aircraft and helicopters. He also noted that the armed opposition groups have also stepped up their attacks.

“Each day, as the violence spirals, more Syrians are killed, injured, tortured or forced to flee their homes or their country,” he stated.

He voiced deep concern about the impact of shelling and use of other heavy weapons on civilians in various locations around the country, particularly in the city of Aleppo, where violence over recent days has already caused a large number of civilians to flee their homes.

Reiterating his concern about weapons of mass destruction, including chemical weapons, Ban stated that any use of such weapons would be an “outrageous crime” and a major concern for the entire international community.

“We are continuously assessing the situation and our options,” said Ban. “We have also intensified our humanitarian operations. As many as two million people are affected by violence. The only solution is a Syrian-led transition that meets the legitimate aspirations of the Syrian people.”

He added that the UN Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS) remains a key tool, and the six-point plan presented by the Joint Special Envoy and the June communiqué of the UN-backed Action Group on Syria – which called for the establishment of a transitional governing body, with full executive powers, as part of important agreed principles and guidelines for a Syrian-led political transition – remain the foundations for a peaceful resolution.

Annan’s six-point plan calls for an end to violence, access for humanitarian agencies to provide relief to those in need, the release of detainees, the start of inclusive political dialogue, and unrestricted access to the country for the international media.

“I call on all sides to take immediate steps to meet the Security Council requirements, and give Syria the chance it needs to move beyond the violence and onto the path to peace,” the UN chief said.

Ban’s comments came just hours after the acting head of UNSMIS, Lieutenant General Babacar Gaye, told reporters in the Syrian capital, Damascus, that he witnessed heavy shelling in the city of Homs during a visit to the area yesterday, and voiced concern about ongoing fighting in Aleppo.

“My observers there have reported an upsurge in the violence, with helicopters, tanks and artillery being used,” Lieutenant General Gaye said. “I call on the parties, again as stated by the Joint Special Envoy, to exercise restraint and avoid further bloodshed – it is imperative that both sides respect international humanitarian law and protect civilians.”

UNSMIS is tasked with monitoring the cessation of violence in Syria, as well as monitoring and supporting the full implementation of the six-point peace plan put forward by Mr. Annan.

“I am disappointed that the Conference on the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) concluded its four-week-long session without agreement on a treaty text that would have set common standards to regulate the international trade in conventional arms,” Ban said. “The Conference’s inability to conclude its work on this much-awaited ATT, despite years of effort of Member States and civil society from many countries, is a setback,” he added.

Ending on Friday without agreement, the four-week long Conference brought together the UN’s 193 Member States to negotiate what is seen as the most important initiative ever regarding conventional arms regulation within the United Nations. According to media reports, some countries had indicated they needed more time to consider the issues.

Despite the lack of agreement, in his statement, Ban said that he was encouraged that the ATT process was not over, with States having agreed to continue pursuing “this noble goal.”

“There is already considerable common ground and States can build on the hard work that has been done during these negotiations,” Ban said, while also noting that his commitment to the pursuit of “a robust ATT is steadfast.”

“A strong treaty would rid the world of the appalling human cost of the poorly regulated international arms trade,” the Secretary-General said. “It would also enhance the ability of the United Nations to cope with the proliferation of arms.”

At the end of 2010, an estimated 27.5 million people were internally displaced as a result of conflict, while millions more have sought refuge abroad. In many cases, the armed violence that drove them from their homes was fuelled by the widespread availability and misuse of weapons.

In his statement, the UN chief also commended the President of the ATT Conference, Ambassador Roberto Garcia Moritán of Argentina, for his persistence and skilful leadership of the process.

In February, the heads of several UN agencies – including the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) – called for a comprehensive arms trade treaty that requires States to assess the risk that serious violations of international humanitarian law and human rights law may be committed with weapons being transferred; includes within its scope all conventional weapons, including small arms; and ensures that there are no loopholes by covering all types of transfers, including activities such as transit, trans-shipment, as wells as loans and leases.

The German magazine Der Spiegel reported the ship had loaded its cargo in Djibouti last week and changed course for Iskenderun in Turkey on Friday when the cargo was at risk of being uncovered. The ship stopped about 80km southwest of the Syrian port of Tartus, its initial destination, it said.

The search of its cargo was delayed until Thursday morning due to stormy weather, according to state run Anatolia news agency .

White Whale Shipping, the Ukrainian company that chartered the Atlantic Cruiser has denied  allegations that there were arms on board and said its cargo was civilian goods. Smuggling arms to Syria would be a violation of EU arms embargo.

The UN imposed a weapons embargo against Syria almost a year ago. During a U.N. Security Council briefing last month, the U.S and Britain accused Iran of  smuggling weapons to Syria which they said were being used against the civilians.

Iran and Syria have denied allegations of arms trade and last month, Damascus told the United Nations armed “terrorist groups” in Syria were receiving weapons from neighboring countries.

The route between Djibouti and Tartus is known as a path for transporting weapons, according to intelligence experts.

In January another ship out of Russia was stopped with munitions in Cyprus, but later continued its journey with the cargo to Syria after the captain declared he would head to a different port than initially planned.