Australia: Joint Statement on Export Controls and Human Rights Initiative issued

On 10 December 2021, the governments of Australia, Denmark, Norway, and the United States issued a Joint Statement on the Export Controls and Human Rights Initiative. According to the statement, the signatories will develop a nonbinding code of conduct on the use of export controls for technologies, such as surveillance tools, which could be used in human rights violations. Alongside the signatory states, Canada, France, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom have expressed support for the Initiative.