The Australia Group is a

multilateral export control regime A multilateral export control regime is an informal group of like-minded supplier countries that seek to contribute to the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, delivery systems, and advanced conventional weapons through national implem ...

(MECR) and an informal group of countries (now joined by the

European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body o ...

) established in 1985 (after the use of

chemical weapon A chemical weapon (CW) is a specialized munition that uses chemicals formulated to inflict death or harm on humans. According to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), this can be any chemical compound intended as a ...

s by

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

in 1984) to help member countries to identify those exports which need to be controlled so as not to contribute to the spread of

chemical A chemical substance is a form of matter having constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. Some references add that chemical substance cannot be separated into its constituent elements by physical separation methods, i.e., wi ...

and

biological Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary in ...

weapon A weapon, arm or armament is any implement or device that can be used to deter, threaten, inflict physical damage, harm, or kill. Weapons are used to increase the efficacy and efficiency of activities such as hunting, crime, law enforcement, s ...

s. The group, initially consisting of 15 members, held its first meeting in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, in June 1985. With the incorporation of India on January 19, 2018, it now has 43 members, including

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, the

, all 27 member states of the European Union,

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

, and

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

. The name comes from Australia's initiative to create the group. Australia manages the secretariat. The initial members of the group had different assessments of which

chemical precursor In chemistry, a precursor is a compound that participates in a chemical reaction that produces another compound. In biochemistry, the term "precursor" often refers more specifically to a chemical compound preceding another in a metabolic pathway, ...

s should be subject to

export control Export control is legislation that regulates the export of goods, software and technology. Some items could potentially be useful for purposes that are contrary to the interest of the exporting country. These items are considered to be ''controlled ...

. Later adherents initially had no such controls. Today, members of the group maintain export controls on a uniform list of 87 compounds, including several that are not prohibited for export under the

Chemical Weapons Convention The Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), officially the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction, is an arms control treaty administered by the Organisation for ...

, but can be used in the manufacture of chemical weapons. Additionally, the Australia Group expanded its standardization of licensing and export controls to cover technology related to the manufacturing of chemical weapons or controlled components. In 2002, the group took two important steps to strengthen export control. The first was the "no-undercut" requirement, which stated that any member of the group considering making an export to another state that had already been denied an export by any other member of the group must first consult with that member state before approving the export. The second was the "catch-all" provision, which requires member states to halt all exports that could be used by importers in chemical or biological weapons programs, regardless of whether the export is on the group's control lists.Arms Control Association, "The Australia Group at a Glance", September 2003, available at www.armscontrol.org/factssheets/australiagroup.asp Delegations representing the members meet every year in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Members

Sovereign states

(1993)
(1985)
(1989)
(1985)
(2001)
(1985)
(2007)
(2000)
(2004)
(1985)
(2004)
(1991)
(1985)
(1985)
(1985)
(1993)
(1993)
(2018)
(1985)
(1985)
(1985)
(1996)
(2004)
(2004)
(1985)
(2004)
(2013)
(1985)
(1985)
(1986)
(1994)
(1985)
(1995)
(1994)
(2004)
(1985)
(1991)
(1987)
(2000)
(2005)
(1985)
(1985)

International organisations

(1985)

References

External links

The Australia Group homepage
{{Authority control International diplomatic organizations Intergovernmental organizations Weapons of mass destruction 1985 establishments in Australia