UNODA Occasional Papers No. 40

The COVID-19 outbreak posed an unprecedented challenge to intergovernmental disarmament institutions and processes. This publication offers an extensive review of relevant developments at the United Nations, particularly in the General Assembly and the Security Council, as well as in the disarmament machinery and other disarmament bodies and processes. After comparing the varying responses to the pandemic, the author considers whether the outbreak should serve as a catalyst for rethinking and changing multilateral working methods or rules of procedure.