A/RES/59/78 Stressing the importance of the symbiotic relationship between disarmament and development and the important role of security in this connection, and concerned at increasing global military expenditure, which could otherwise be spent on development needs, Welcomes the report of the Group of Governmental Experts on the 1. relationship between disarmament and development 5 and its reappraisal of this significant issue in the current international context; 2. Stresses the central role of the United Nations in the disarmamentdevelopment relationship, and requests the Secretary-General to strengthen further the role of the Organization in this field, in particular the high-level Steering Group on Disarmament and Development, in order to assure continued and effective coordination and close cooperation between the relevant United Nations departments, agencies and sub-agencies; Requests the Secretary-General to continue to take action, through 3. appropriate organs and within available resources, for the implementation of the action programme adopted at the 1987 International Conference on the Relationship between Disarmament and Development;2 4. Urges the international community to devote part of the resources made available by the implementation of disarmament and arms limitation agreements to economic and social development, with a view to reducing the ever widening gap between developed and developing countries; Encourages the international community to achieve the Millennium 5. Development Goals and to make reference to the contribution that disarmament could provide in meeting them when it reviews its progress towards this purpose in 2005, as well as to make greater efforts to integrate disarmament, humanitarian and development activities; Encourages the relevant regional and subregional organizations and 6. institutions, non-governmental organizations and research institutes to incorporate issues related to the relationship between disarmament and development in their agendas and, in this regard, to take into account the report of the Group of Governmental Experts; Requests the Secretary-General to report to the General Assembly at its 7. sixtieth session on the implementation of the present resolution; 8. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its sixtieth session the item entitled “Relationship between disarmament and development”. 66th plenary meeting 3 December 2004 _______________ 5 2 See A/59/119.