LUXEMBOURG, Oct 3 (Reuters) - European Union foreign ministers on Monday backed the idea of creating an international treaty controlling the sale of small arms and called on the United Nations to take the lead.

At a meeting in Luxembourg, foreign ministers "acknowledged the growing support, in all parts of the world, for an international treaty to establish common standards for the global trade in conventional arms," a statement said.

They agreed that the United Nations was the only forum capable of overseeing this, the statement added.

The EU move drew praise from aid agency Oxfam which, with Amnesty International, has campaigned for a treaty setting global controls on small and light arms.

Oxfam says one million people have been killed by small arms since the U.N. last met on the issue in 2001.

"Dozens of countries from around the world have already backed the treaty. Attention now turns to the U.N. arms conference next year and ensuring that the treaty tops the agenda," it said.

The United Nations is due to meet on June 26 next year to discuss small arms.