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Cluster Munition Monitor 2012
Universalization
This section looks at the status of universalization of the Convention on Cluster Munitions, including progress by
countries that did not sign and signatories that still need to ratify. Key meetings and campaigning actions related to the
Convention on Cluster Munitions during the period are also reviewed, as is the unsuccessful initiative to conclude a new
protocol on cluster munitions at the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW).
More than half of the countries in the world—111 states—have signed, ratified, or acceded to the convention as of 31
July 2012. Of these states, 41 are from Sub-Saharan Africa, 33 are from Europe, 22 are from the Americas, 12 are from
Asia-Pacific, and three are from the Middle East and North Africa region, as listed in the summary table at the front of
this report.
Signature
A total of 108 states signed the Convention on Cluster Munitions in the period from when it was opened for signature in
Oslo on 3-4 December 2008 until its entry into force on 1 August 2010. 4 Since the convention entered into force, states
can no longer sign, but must instead accede (essentially a process that combines signature and ratification into a single
step). 5
Of the 108 signatories, 72 have ratified (as of 31 July 2012), leaving 36 signatories that still need to ratify to become
States Parties.
Signatories are bound by the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties not to engage in acts that “would defeat the
object and purpose” of any treaty they have signed. Thus, signatories to the Convention on Cluster Munitions have
committed to never use, produce, or transfer cluster munitions, even if they have not yet ratified. 6
Accession
Three countries have acceded to the Convention on Cluster Munitions since its entry into force, all during the second half
of 2011: Grenada on 29 June, Swaziland on 13 September, and Trinidad and Tobago on 21 September.
No countries acceded to the convention in the first half of 2012 and progress overall on accession remained slow. Still,
a number of non-signatories have indicated their intention to accede, including several of the states that adopted the
convention in Dublin, but did not subsequently sign. 7 In June 2012, the government of Andorra approved accession to the
convention and parliamentary consent is expected by the end of the year. 8
States that indicated during the reporting period that they are seriously considering accession to the convention came
from Africa (Eritrea, Gabon, Mauritius, South Sudan, and Zimbabwe) and Asia-Pacific (Cambodia, Kiribati, Malaysia,
Solomon Islands, Thailand, and Vanuatu) as well as Tajikistan. The failure of the CCW in November 2011 to conclude a
protocol on cluster munitions may lead to policy reviews by countries that previously said they were waiting for a CCW
outcome before making a decision on accession to the Convention on Cluster Munitions. 9
Ratification
A total of 72 signatories had ratified the Convention on Cluster Munitions as of 31 July 2012, an increase of 12 ratifications
since August 2011. Four signatories ratified during the signing conference on 3 December 2008 (Holy See, Ireland,
Norway, and Sierra Leone); 22 ratified in 2009; 23 in 2010; 15 in 2011; and eight in 2012, as of 31 July.
4
Ninety-four states signed in Oslo on 3–4 December 2008, 10 signed in 2009, and four signed in the first seven months of 2010 before the
convention entered into force as binding international law.
5
A state must deposit an instrument of accession with the UN in New York. The convention enters into force for each individual state on the
first day of the sixth month after their deposit of the instrument of accession.
6
The Vienna Convention is considered customary international law binding on all countries.
7
The 18 states that adopted the convention in Dublin, but did not subsequently sign are: Argentina, Bahrain, Belize, Brunei, Cambodia, Estonia,
Finland, Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, Morocco, Papua New Guinea, Qatar, Serbia, Slovakia, Sudan, Timor-Leste, Vanuatu, and Venezuela. Six
states adopted the convention and did not sign during the Convention on Cluster Munitions Signing Conference, but joined later: Cameroon,
DRC, Jamaica, Nigeria, Seychelles, and Swaziland.
8
“Proposal of approval to the accession of the Convention on Cluster Munitions, adopted in Dublin on 30 May 2008,” accession package
submitted to the Council General (Consell General) by Andorra’s Head of Government, 25 June 2012. http://www.parlament.ad/micg/
webconsell.nsf/0/50A89FE0306B71B6C1257A28003BE978. Translation by the Monitor.
9
Among the states that said they preferred to wait for a CCW outcome before deciding on the Convention on Cluster Munitions are Estonia,
Finland, Greece, Latvia, Romania, Slovakia, and Turkey.
6