GROUP OF GOVERNMENTAL EXPERTS OF STATES PARTIES TO CCW TO MEET FROM 14 TO 22 NOVEMBER

The Twelfth Session of the Group of Governmental Experts of the States 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), established by the Second Review Conference of the States Parties to the Convention on 21 December 2001, will be held from 14 to 22 November 2005 at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.

The Group will continue its consideration of the two main issues related to explosive remnants of war (ERW) and mines other than anti-personnel mines (MOTAPM). The Group is also expected to arrive at an agreement regarding future work, which would subsequently be conveyed as a recommendation to the Meeting of the States Parties, scheduled to take place on 24 and 25 November 2005, for adoption.

During the session the Group will continue in particular to consider, including through participation of legal experts, the implementation of existing principles of International Humanitarian Law and to further study, on an open-ended basis, with particular emphasis on meetings of military and technical experts, possible preventive measures aimed at improving the design of certain specific types of munitions, including sub-munitions, with a view to minimising the humanitarian risk of these munitions becoming explosive remnants of war. Exchange of information, assistance and co-operation would be part of this work.

The Group will also consider all proposals put forward since its establishment with the aim of elaborating appropriate recommendations on mines other than anti-personnel mines for submission to the next Meeting of the States Parties to the Convention. Meetings of military experts shall also be conducted to provide advice on these activities.

The Group will continue examination of the issue on Compliance with the Convention and its Protocols, as well as of the issue on the preparation for the Third Review Conference, which is scheduled for 2006.

The Meeting of the States Parties to the Convention held from 18 to 19 November 2004 decided that Ambassador Gordan Markotić of Croatia, as Chairperson-designate of the 2005 Meeting of the States Parties (24 and 25 November 2005), would chair the sessions of the Group in 2005. Ambasador Jayant Prasad of India was appointed as Coordinator on ERW and Ambassador Markku Reimaa of Finland as Coordinator on MOTAPM.

The Group held its Tenth Session from 7 to 11 March and its Eleventh Session from 2 to 12 August 2005. The current session of the Group will be held back-to-back with the Seventh Annual Conference of the States Parties to Amended Protocol II and the Meeting of the States Parties to the Convention thereafter.

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 was concluded on October 10, 1980, and entered into force on December 2, 1983. The Convention consists of a framework instrument and five individual protocols that regulate specific types of weapons, which are considered to cause unnecessary or unjustifiable suffering or to have other humanitarian consequences. Currently 100 States are party to the Convention with a further six having signed but not yet ratified. Four of the Protocols, annexed to the Convention are already in force, namely: Protocol I on Non-Detectable Fragments; Protocol II on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Mines, Booby Traps and Other Devices, as amended on 3 May 1996; Protocol III on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Incendiary Weapons; and Protocol IV on Blinding Laser Weapons.

The most recent of the Protocols annexed to the Convention, Protocol V on Explosive Remnants of War was adopted on 28 November 2003. Since then 13 States have notified the UN Secretary-General, as depositary of the Convention, of their consent to be bound by Protocol V.

For use of the information media; not an official record

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