( CNN ) -- The U.N. General Assembly voted to adopt the world body 's first treaty to regulate the global arms trade Tuesday , a move Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called `` a victory for the world 's people . '' The Arms Trade Treaty will regulate the transfers of tanks , heavy artillery , combat aircraft , missiles , warships and small arms . Ban said the pact will make it harder for weapons to reach black markets and fall into the hands of `` warlords , pirates , terrorists , criminals and their like . '' `` It will be a powerful new tool in our efforts to prevent grave human rights abuses or violations of international humanitarian law , '' he said in a statement on the 154-3 vote . `` And it will provide much-needed momentum for other global disarmament and non-proliferation efforts . '' Iran , Syria and North Korea were the only votes against the treaty , which will take effect when 50 member states ratify it . `` The international community can claim full ownership of this treaty , which will make trade in conventional arms more responsible and transparent , thus reducing human suffering and tangibly contributing to international peace , security and stability , '' Catherine Ashton , the European Union 's foreign policy chief , said in a written statement . And U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said the pact `` can strengthen global security while protecting the sovereign right of states to conduct legitimate arms trade . '' The National Rifle Association , the American gun lobby , has vowed to oppose the treaty 's ratification in the U.S. Senate . The NRA says the treaty is `` designed to severely restrict or even outright ban the right to sell , purchase , carry or own a firearm in America . '' Senators voted 53-46 to attach an anti-treaty amendment authored by Sen. Jim Inhofe , R-Oklahoma , to the chamber 's budget resolution for 2014 . But Kerry said the treaty `` applies only to international trade , and reaffirms the sovereign right of any state to regulate arms within its territory . '' `` As the United States has required from the outset of these negotiations , nothing in this treaty could ever infringe on the rights of American citizens under our domestic law or the Constitution , including the Second Amendment , '' he said .
The Arms Trade Treaty will regulate transfers of heavy weapons and small arms . Iran , Syria and North Korea voted against the treaty at the United Nations . Comment: