UNITED NATIONS, April 30 (Xinhua) -- The UN Security Council held on Wednesday an open debate on the threat posed by the illicit flow of small arms to international peace and security.

    During the meeting, Hannelore Hoppe, deputy to the high representative for disarmament affairs, presented UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's first-ever report on small arms.

    In the report, the UN chief said that, while a build-up of small arms alone may not create the conflicts in which they are used, their excessive accumulation and universal availability tends to aggravate conflicts and lengthen them.

    Most present-day conflicts are fought mainly with small arms and light weapons, he said.

    They are broadly used in inter-State conflict and are the weapons of choice in civil wars and for terrorism, organized crime and gang warfare, he noted.

    The report stressed the need for collaboration between the council and the General Assembly to curb the illicit flows of arms and ammunition to crisis and conflict areas.

    Additionally, it presented several recommendations directly involving the Council, including strengthening ties between its arms embargoes and its disarmament, demobilization and reintegration efforts, as well as to further apply its practice of tying arms embargo exceptions to security sector reform.