A/HRC/27/51 29. Following the end of the cold war and the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the international community had a legitimate expectation that the world could be reoriented towards cooperation and solidarity and that the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations would be vindicated. Billions of human beings were relieved to move away from needless distrust and confrontation. When, in 1991, the Warsaw Pact was dismantled, many considered that NATO had lost its raison d’être as a bastion against expansionist communism and that the expensive military alliance would be dissolved. Instead, NATO expanded eastward and military expenditures continued. The hope of many that finally there would be long-term disarmament for sustainable development was dashed. 30. It is not unusual for regional military alliances to pressure their members to increase military expenditures,41 even at the expense of education and social services. Would it not be better to leave peacemaking and peacekeeping in the hands of the United Nations as envisaged in its Charter? According to a 2014 report, the European Union is spending at least 315 million euros on drone-related projects.42 Yet the use of armed drones against civilian targets having been found to be contrary to international humanitarian law, the research funds could certainly have been better spent elsewhere.43 Drones are no substitute for foreign policy. On 25 February 2014, the European Parliament adopted a resolution condemning the use of drones.44 31. Those States that undergo domestic unrest frequently fail to extend the degree of protection which the population deserves. According to the doctrine of non-intervention, foreign interference in the domestic affairs of other States and the sale of weapons to the incumbent government or to insurgent groups are no solution. What is necessary is international solidarity in helping a State’s authorities to better protect the human rights of its population. There is a distinct danger of politically-motivated recourse to the right to protect (R2P) doctrine (formerly the “humanitarian intervention” doctrine),45 which would actually erode Article 2, paragraph 4, of the Charter of the United Nations and ultimately be counterproductive. 32. There are other obstacles to a democratic and equitable international order which cannot be examined in the present report, for instance the complications caused by the diversion of weapons to unauthorized groups or individuals.46 While military expenditures for the procurement of nuclear weapons are not justified, expenditures for conventional weapons are also fraught with problems, including diversion, corruption, bribery, theft, etc. Organizations such as the Small Arms Survey serve an important function by monitoring small arms stockpiles held by States throughout the world, ferreting out corruption. The 41 42 43 44 45 46 12 Following the NATO meeting in Brussels on 24 and 25 March 2014, President Barack Obama stated that he was concerned that defence spending in Europe had fallen in several countries: “If we have collective defence it means everyone has to chip in.” See www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/int/nato-spending.htm. See also www.whitehouse.gov/photos-and-video/video/2014/03/26/president-obama-holds-press-conference. Germany is accordingly increasing military spending: see ottawacitizen.com/news/national/defencewatch/germany-to-increase-defence-budget-but-rejects-gdp-percentage-method-for-mapping-levelsof-military-spending. See www.tni.org/sites/www.tni.org/files/download/011453_tni_eurodrones_inc_br_3e.pdf. Report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, Ben Emmerson (A/HRC/25/59). See www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+MOTION+P7-RC-20140201+0+DOC+XML+V0//EN. See paragraphs 130–139 of the 2005 World Summit Outcome Document, available from www.unric.org/html/english/library/backgrounders/R2P.pdf. Eric Berman, Small Arms Survey, various articles, available from www.smallarmssurvey.org/armedactors/state-security-forces.html.