Entry into Force
The Convention on Cluster Munitions – the most significant disarmament and humanitarian treaty since the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty – entered into force and became fully legally binding on 1 August 2010. From that date forward, states parties must implement all of the treaty’s lifesaving obligations.
This treaty prohibits the use, production, stockpiling, and transfer of cluster munitions and calls on states parties to:
- declare and destroy stockpiled cluster munitions within eight years;
- identify and clear cluster munition-contaminated areas within 10 years; and
- assist affected communities and cluster munition survivors so that they can be fully included in society and enjoy their fundamental human rights.
International revulsion toward cluster munitions and the civilian harm they cause
The entry into force of such a major piece of international humanitarian law is a rare and special occasion. Entry into force was triggered when the Convention reached 30 ratifications in February 2010, just 14 months after it opened for signature in Oslo in December 2008 – a very swift pace compared with other international treaties. This swift entry into force is a reflection of the growing international revulsion toward cluster munitions and the civilian harm they cause. For a complete list of states that have signed and ratified the treaty, please visit: www.stopclustermunitions.org/treatystatus.
Since 1 August 2010, states are no longer able to sign the Convention and instead need to accede, which is essentially signing and ratifying in a single step.
To read the full text of the Convention on Cluster Munitions visit http://www.stopclustermunitions.org/the-solution/the-treaty/.
