Cluster bomb ban to enter into force August 1st

Submunitions piled near Bagram, Afghanistan, 2002

Submunitions piled near Bagram, Afghanistan, 2002

Good news from the Cluster Munition Coalition:

Cluster bomb ban treaty reaches 30th ratification milestone
Will become binding international law on 1 August 2010

(London, 16 February 2010) – Burkina Faso and Moldova ratified the international Convention banning cluster munitions today, bringing the total number of ratifications to 30 and triggering entry into force on 1 August 2010, when the Convention will become binding international law.

“The first 30 states to ratify the Convention on Cluster Munitions should be proud of their central role in helping to put an end for all time to the suffering caused by these cruel and unjust weapons,” said Thomas Nash, Coordinator of the Cluster Munition Coalition (CMC). “For those not yet on board the Convention, 2010 is the year to get on the right side of history, to get in on the ground floor, and join the ban before the First Meeting of States Parties in November.”

(Full text: Cluster Bomb Ban Treaty Reaches 30th Ratification Milestone, Cluster Munition Coalition, 16 February 2010)

Canada is one of the 104 signatories of the Convention on Cluster Munitions, but it has not yet ratified the convention.

Photo by John Rodsted

Tags: Cluster munitions, Cluster Munitions Coalition, Convention on Cluster Munitions, Defence policy