On September 28, 2014, eight states ratified the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), bringing the total number of states parties to 53. According to Article 22 of the ATT, the “Treaty shall enter into force ninety days following the date of the deposit of the fiftieth instrument of ratification, acceptance or approval with the Depositary.” The object of the Treaty is to “[e]stablish the highest possible common international standards for regulating or improving the regulation of the international trade in conventional arms,” and to “[p]revent and eradicate the illicit trade in conventional arms and prevent their diversion.”