United Nations, Sep 26 (IANS) The UN has announced that a treaty designed to regulate the multi-billion-dollar international arms trade will enter into force in December after it was ratified by the 50th country Thursday.

"Today marks a milestone in the history of the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT)," Xinhua quoted UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon as saying in his message to a high-level event here on the ATT.

"Less than two years after its adoption by the General Assembly, we have crossed the threshold of 50 ratifications needed to trigger the Treaty's entry-into-force."

"This will occur on 24 December," he said. "Today we can look ahead with satisfaction to the date of this historic new Treaty's entry into force."

Eight countries deposited their instruments of ratification with the UN chief earlier Thursday, including Argentina, Bahamas, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Czech Republic, Portugal, Saint Lucia, Senegal and Uruguay, while two states, Georgia and Namibia, signed the treaty.

In a message delivered by his High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Angela Kane, Ban said the need for the ATT remains abundantly clear.