A U.N.-sponsored international conference on disarmament will be held July 22 to 25 in Sapporo to promote international cooperation in arms reduction, Foreign Ministry officials said July 8.

About 70 people from the public and private sectors will discuss issues concerning conventional arms and weapons of mass destruction, the officials said. No official declaration or appeal will be adopted at the meeting, but the conference is significant because international cooperation on disarmament is becoming increasingly important, they said.