Conventional weapon

Conventional weapons are those weapons that are not weapons of mass destruction.^[1] They can include weapons such as armoured fighting vehicles, armed helicopters, combat aircraft, artillery and warships.^[2] They can also include (but are not limited to) small arms, ammunition, cluster munitions, incendiary device and land mines.^[2] There is no single definition of conventional weapons.^[3] But they are the main weapons used in modern conventional warfare.^[2]

UN Register of Conventional Arms

The United Nations set up the UN Register of Conventional Arms (UNROCA) in 1991.^[4] UN member nations add details of their imports and exports of conventional weapons.^[4] There are seven categories of conventional weapons in the register.^[4]

• Category I – Battle tanks.^[5]
• Category II – Armored combat vehicles.^[5]
• Category III – Large-calibre artillery systems.^[5]
• Category IV – Combat aircraft.^[5]
• Category V – Attack helicopters.^[5]
• Category VI – Warships.^[5]
• Category VII – Missiles and missile launchers.^[5]

Related pages

• Small arms
• Nuclear weapon
• Chemical weapon
• Biological weapon