CCW STATES PARTIES TO CONSIDER ACTION ON CLUSTER MUNITIONS

The Meeting of the High Contracting Parties to the Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons Which May Be Deemed to Be Excessively Injurious or to Have Indiscriminate Effects (CCW) will be held from 7 to 13 November 2007 at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.

As decided by the 2006 Third Review Conference, the Meeting will be presided by Ambassador Fransiscos Verros of Greece.

It will consider the report of the Group of Governmental Experts (GGE), convened in Geneva from 19 to 23 June. The GGE, presided over by Ambassador Janis Karklins of Latvia, who was assisted by Ms. Vera Bohle of the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining as Chair of the meetings of Military and Technical Experts, considered all the different aspects of the cluster munitions problem, notably on the military use, the humanitarian impact, the technical aspects, the legal aspects, and definitions on cluster munitions. The discussion had assisted the States parties in acquiring a comprehensive, impartial and balanced perception of the global cluster munitions problem thus enhancing the States Parties’ confidence to take an important decision on this issue. The Group’s report essentially recommends that the Meeting take a decision on how best to address the humanitarian impact of cluster munitions as a matter of urgency, including the possibility of a new instrument. In this regard, the Meeting is expected to decide, inter alia, on the possibility to negotiate a new legally-binding instrument to address the humanitarian impact of cluster munitions.

The Meeting will consider options to promote compliance with the Convention and its protocols and is expected to further develop and enhance a decision by the Third Review Conference on the establishment of a Compliance mechanism applicable to the Convention and its Protocols.

The Meeting will also need to consider the issue on Universality, a constant reminder of the landmark decision of the Third Review Conference on a Plan of Action to Promote the Universality of the Convention and its annexed Protocols. Closely associated to this is the decision to establish a CCW Sponsorship Programme last year, which is presently up and running for the first time funding some 25 delegates from mostly the least-developed countries affected by explosive remnants of war or mines to attend the Meeting.

The issues of how to minimize the humanitarian and developmental impact of mines other than anti-personnel mines (anti-vehicle mines) will also be part of its work.

The Convention was opened for signature at New York on 10 April 1981 and entered into force on 2 December 1983. It currently has 103 States Parties. The Secretary-General of the United Nations is the depositary of the Convention. For more information pertaining to the CCW, consult the official website of the CCW as part of the website of the United Nations Office at Geneva (UNOG) at: http://www.unog.ch/disarmament/.

For use of the information media; not an official record

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