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Page 115
Appendix F
Signatories to the Ottawa Convention and Their Alternatives to Landmines
The Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction (known as the Ottawa Convention) was open for signature from December 3, 1997, until its entry into force on March 1, 1999, six months after it had been ratified, accepted, approved, or acceded to by 40 countries. After that date, no country was allowed to sign it and ratify it later. Countries could join (become a party to) the treaty, however, through a one-step procedure known as accession.
As of September 2000, 107 countries had ratified, accepted, approved or acceded to the convention. Although few of these countries are actively searching for or developing alternatives to landmines, many are monitoring international developments in this area; several countries are participating in a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) study on the consequences of the APL ban and possible technological alternatives that do not have the negative effects of APL. The Committee on Alternative Technologies to Replace Antipersonnel Landmines found a few instances of countries other than the United States identifying or working to identify alternatives to APL.
AUSTRALIA
An Australian company, Metal Storm, has developed an all-electronic firing system that represents a breakthrough in gun technology, which the company believes could lead to “the development of an area denial weapons system to replace antipersonnel landmines” (Metal Storm, 2000a). The Australian Army has approved a three-year program for the development of a prototype minefield-replacement mortarbox system, utilizing Metal Storm technology (Metal Storm, 2000b). Conceptually, this application would be similar in operation to the U.S. Claymore and the French Sphinx-Moder. According to the company's description, a man-inthe-loop, after observing and identifying a target, would fire a launcher sending a variety of projectiles into the protected area.
CANADA
The Canadian Centre for Mine-Action Technologies (CCMAT), a joint initiative of the Department of National Defence and Industry Canada, is mandated to “conduct research and gather information to show that viable and more humane alternatives [to APL], which do not target civilians, can be developed.” CCMAT also conducts research on demining technologies, medical treatment, and the rehabilitation of mine victims (CDND, 1998). CCMAT is exploring nonlethal alternatives only (ICBL, 2000). It is also conducting a series of studies “to determine the impact of removing antipersonnel landmines on land force operations and to determine if replacement technologies are necessary” (Roy and Friesen, 1999). The first volume in this series, a study on the historical uses of APL, was made available to the Committee on Alternative Technologies to Replace Antipersonnel Landmines.
According to the Antipersonnel Mine Operational Planning and Policy Guidelines for the Canadian Forces, Canada would replace its APL with “a mix of sensors, commanddetonated weapons [such as the M-18 Claymore reclassified as C19s], additional infantry, artillery, armour and air-delivered weapons” (Fredenburg, 1997).
FRANCE
The Sphinx-Moder (described in
Chapter 6) is designed to fire wounding, warning, or practice munitions. It is being produced in series and has been adopted by the French Army to take the place of antipersonnel mines.
JAPAN
The Japanese Defense Agency is developing an alternative weapon system to APL called the “antipersonnel obstacle system,” which combines sensors and remote control.
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OCR for page 115
Page 115
Appendix F
Signatories to the Ottawa Convention and Their Alternatives to Landmines
The Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction (known as the Ottawa Convention) was open for signature from December 3, 1997, until its entry into force on March 1, 1999, six months after it had been ratified, accepted, approved, or acceded to by 40 countries. After that date, no country was allowed to sign it and ratify it later. Countries could join (become a party to) the treaty, however, through a one-step procedure known as accession.
As of September 2000, 107 countries had ratified, accepted, approved or acceded to the convention. Although few of these countries are actively searching for or developing alternatives to landmines, many are monitoring international developments in this area; several countries are participating in a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) study on the consequences of the APL ban and possible technological alternatives that do not have the negative effects of APL. The Committee on Alternative Technologies to Replace Antipersonnel Landmines found a few instances of countries other than the United States identifying or working to identify alternatives to APL.
AUSTRALIA
An Australian company, Metal Storm, has developed an all-electronic firing system that represents a breakthrough in gun technology, which the company believes could lead to “the development of an area denial weapons system to replace antipersonnel landmines” (Metal Storm, 2000a). The Australian Army has approved a three-year program for the development of a prototype minefield-replacement mortarbox system, utilizing Metal Storm technology (Metal Storm, 2000b). Conceptually, this application would be similar in operation to the U.S. Claymore and the French Sphinx-Moder. According to the company's description, a man-inthe-loop, after observing and identifying a target, would fire a launcher sending a variety of projectiles into the protected area.
CANADA
The Canadian Centre for Mine-Action Technologies (CCMAT), a joint initiative of the Department of National Defence and Industry Canada, is mandated to “conduct research and gather information to show that viable and more humane alternatives [to APL], which do not target civilians, can be developed.” CCMAT also conducts research on demining technologies, medical treatment, and the rehabilitation of mine victims (CDND, 1998). CCMAT is exploring nonlethal alternatives only (ICBL, 2000). It is also conducting a series of studies “to determine the impact of removing antipersonnel landmines on land force operations and to determine if replacement technologies are necessary” (Roy and Friesen, 1999). The first volume in this series, a study on the historical uses of APL, was made available to the Committee on Alternative Technologies to Replace Antipersonnel Landmines.
According to the Antipersonnel Mine Operational Planning and Policy Guidelines for the Canadian Forces, Canada would replace its APL with “a mix of sensors, commanddetonated weapons [such as the M-18 Claymore reclassified as C19s], additional infantry, artillery, armour and air-delivered weapons” (Fredenburg, 1997).
FRANCE
The Sphinx-Moder (described in
Chapter 6) is designed to fire wounding, warning, or practice munitions. It is being produced in series and has been adopted by the French Army to take the place of antipersonnel mines.
JAPAN
The Japanese Defense Agency is developing an alternative weapon system to APL called the “antipersonnel obstacle system,” which combines sensors and remote control.
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Page 116
The system is detonated manually. Until a new system is developed, the Defense Agency will use “directional-multiple-shots” as an alternative weapon (ICBL, 1999).
RUSSIA
Although Russia is not a party to the Ottawa Convention, it has been focusing its efforts on the research and development of landmine alternatives (ICBL, 2000). Few details are available, but researchers appear to be improving antipersonnel munitions that would not be considered APL under the convention, including munitions actuated by an operator by radio, wire, or automatically after a definite period of time. Research on alternatives is being conducted by the State Research and Development Engineer Institute and the Science-Research Machinery Building Institute (ICBL, 1999).
The following 107 countries had ratified or acceded to the Ottawa Convention as of September 2000:
SWITZERLAND
Switzerland conducted an investigation of nonlethal APL alternatives, video monitors, and various technical sensors. However, the program did not lead to feasible results and has been terminated (ICBL, 2000).
UNITED KINGDOM
The U.K. Ministry of Defence is investigating possible nonlethal alternatives, but it is not yet known whether these will be produced (ICBL, 2000).
Albania
Djibouti
Luxembourg
Rwanda
Andorra
Dominica
Macedonia, FYR
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Antigua and Barbuda
Dominican
Republic Madagascar
Saint Lucia
Argentina
Ecuador
Maldives
Samoa
Australia
El Salvador
Malaysia
San Marino
Austria
Equatorial Guinea
Malawi
Senegal
Bahamas
Fiji
Mali
Seychelles
Bangladesh
France
Mauritania
Slovakia
Barbados
Gabon
Mauritius
Slovenia
Belgium
Germany
Mexico
Solomon Islands
Belize
Ghana
Moldova
South Africa
Benin
Grenada
Monaco
Spain
Bolivia
Guatemala
Mozambique
Swaziland
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Guinea
Nauru
Sweden
Botswana
Holy See
Namibia
Switzerland
Brazil
Honduras
Netherland
Tajikistan
Bulgaria
Hungary
New Zealand
Thailand
Burkina Faso
Iceland
Nicaragua
Togo
Cambodia
Ireland
Niger
Trinidad and Tobago
Canada
Italy
Niue
Tunisia
Chad
Jamaica
Norway
Turkmenistan
Colombia
Japan
Panama
Uganda
Costa Rica
Jordan
Paraguay
United Kingdom
Côte d'Ivoire
Kiribati
Peru
Venezuela
Croatia
Lesotho
Philippines
Yemen
Czech Republic
Liberia
Portugal
Zimbabwe
Denmark
Liechtenstein
Qatar
Between September 2000 and the publication of this report, two countries ratified the convention:
Romania
United Republic of Tanzania
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The following 30 countries have signed the convention but have not ratified it and, therefore, are not yet parties to the convention:
Algeria
Chile
Guinea-Bissau
Malta
Sudan
Angola
Cook Islands
Guyana
Marshall Islands
Suriname
Brunei Darussalam
Cyprus
Haiti
Poland
Ukraine
Burundi
Ethiopia
Indonesia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Uruguay
Cameroon
Gambia
Kenya
São Tomé e Principe
Vanuatu
Cape Verde
Greece
Lithuania
Sierra Leone
Zambia
The following countries had not signed the convention as of December 2000:
Afghanistan
D.R. Congo
Korea, North
Myanmar (Burma)
Sri Lanka
Armenia
Egypt
Korea, South
Nepal
Syria
Azerbaijan
Eritrea
Kuwait
Nigeria
Tonga
Bahrain
Estonia
Kyrgyzstan
Oman
Turkey
Belarus
Finland
Laos
Pakistan
Tuvalu
Bhutan
Georgia
Latvia
Palau
United Arab Emirates
Central African Republic
India
Lebanon
Papua New Guinea
United States of America
China
Iran
Libya
Russia
Uzbekistan
Comoros
Iraq
Micronesia
Saudi Arabia
Vietnam
Congo (Brazzaville)
Israel
Mongolia
Singapore
Yugoslavia
Cuba
Kazakhstan
Morocco
Somalia
REFERENCES
CDND (Canadian Department of National Defence).
1998. Ministers Announce Creation of Centre for Mine-Action Technologies, News Release, August 25, 1998. Available on line:
http://www.dnd.ca/eng/archive/1998/aug98/centremat_n_e.htm.
Fredenburg, P.W.
1997. The banning of the antipersonnel landmine. Canadian Defence Quarterly
27(2):
5–9.
ICBL (International Campaign to Ban Landmines).
1999. Landmine Monitor Report 1999: Toward a Mine-Free World.
Washington, D.C.:
Human Rights Watch.
ICBL.
2000. Landmine Monitor Report 2000: Toward a Mine-Free World.
Washington, D.C.:
Human Rights Watch.
Metal Storm.
2000a. Landmine replacement a step closer to reality. Available on line:
http://www.metalstorm-ltd.com/press_releases/july03-00.html.
Metal Storm.
2000b. Metal Storm secures Australian Army support for minefield replacement development programme. Available on line:
http://www.metalstorm-ltd.com/press_releases/july07-00.html.
Roy, R.L., and
S. Friesen.
1999. Historical Uses of Antipersonnel Landmines: Impact on Land Force Operations.
Operational Research Division, Research Note 9906.
Kingston, Ontario:
Canadian Department of National Defence.
Representative terms from entire chapter:
ottawa convention
