A/RES/56/24 Welcoming the consolidated report of the Secretary-General on the Register,54 which includes the returns of Member States for 2000, Welcoming also the response of Member States to the request contained in paragraphs 9 and 10 of resolution 46/36 L to provide data on their imports and exports of arms, as well as available background information regarding their military holdings, procurement through national production and relevant policies, Stressing that the continuing operation of the Register and its further development should be reviewed in order to secure a Register that is capable of attracting the widest possible participation, 1. Reaffirms its determination to ensure the effective operation of the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms,53 as provided for in paragraphs 7 to 10 of resolution 46/36 L; 2. Calls upon Member States, with a view to achieving universal participation, to provide the Secretary-General by 31 May annually with the requested data and information for the Register, including nil reports if appropriate, on the basis of resolutions 46/36 L and 47/52 L, the recommendations contained in paragraph 64 of the 1997 report of the Secretary-General on the continuing operation of the Register and its further development 55 and the recommendations contained in paragraph 94 of the 2000 report of the Secretary-General and the appendices and annexes thereto; 56 3. Invites Member States in a position to do so, pending further development of the Register, to provide additional information on procurement from national production and military holdings and to make use of the “Remarks” column in the standardized reporting form to provide additional information such as types or models; 4. Reaffirms its decision, with a view to further development of the Register, to keep the scope of and participation in the Register under review and, to that end: (a) Recalls its request to Member States to provide the Secretary-General with their views on the continuing operation of the Register and its further development and on transparency measures related to weapons of mass destruction; (b) Requests the Secretary-General, with the assistance of a group of governmental experts to be convened in 2003, on the basis of equitable geographical representation, to prepare a report on the continuing operation of the Register and its further development, taking into account the work of the Conference on Disarmament, the views expressed by Member States and the reports of the Secretary-General on the continuing operation of the Register and its further development, with a view to a decision at its fifty-eighth session; 5. Also requests the Secretary-General to implement the recommendations contained in his 2000 report on the continuing operation of the Register and its further development and to ensure that sufficient resources are made available for the Secretariat to operate and maintain the Register; _______________ 54 A/56/257 and Add.1. A/52/316 and Corr.2. 56 A/55/281. 55 26