UN members fail to reach treaty on global arms trade

07/28/12: Al Jazeera reports UN member states have failed to reach agreement on a new treaty to regulate the multibillion dollar global arms trade, with some diplomats and supporters blaming the US for triggering the unraveling of the month-long negotiations.  Hopes had been raised that agreement could be reached on a revised treaty text that closed some major loopholes by Friday’s deadline for action.  However, the US announced that it needed more time to consider the proposed treaty, and Russia and China then also asked for more time.  The UN General Assembly voted in December 2006 to work toward a treaty regulating the growing arms trade, with the US voting against, but in October 2009, President Obama reversed his predecessor’s position.