© Stéphane de Greef/Monitor, 1 April 2011Cluster submunition contamination in Cambodia.

A total of 28 states and three other areas were believed to have cluster munition remnants on their territory as of 25 August 2011. Sixteen of these states have signed or ratified the Convention on Cluster Munitions. The Monitor calculated that in 2010 at least 59,978 unexploded submunitions were destroyed by 18 states and three areas during clearance operations of a total area of 18.5km².

Global Contamination

Cluster munition remnants are defined in the convention as covering four types of hazard: unexploded submunitions, unexploded bomblets, failed cluster munitions, and abandoned cluster munitions.^[1] Unexploded submunitions pose the greatest threat to civilians, primarily as a result of their sensitive fuzing, but also because of their shape, color, and metal content, which often attracts tampering, playing, or collection, especially by boys and young men.

A total of 28 states and three other areas are believed to have cluster munition remnants including unexploded submunitions on their territory as of 25 August 2011 (see States contaminated by cluster munition remnants table below). Eight of these contaminated states have ratified the Convention on Cluster Munitions, committing to clear their land within 10 years, while another eight have signed, but not yet ratified.

States and other areas contaminated by cluster munition remnants

Note: Convention on Cluster Munition States Parties and signatories are indicated by bold and other areas by italics.

Libya is the most recent addition to the list of contaminated states, following the use of cluster munitions by government forces in Misrata in April 2011. Germany and Norway have also been added for the first time after they both identified suspected contamination in 2011 from unexploded submunitions on military training ranges.

In addition, one State Party (Guinea-Bissau) and one signatory (Republic of the Congo) are believed to be contaminated from explosions at ammunition storage areas (ASAs) and not from the use of cluster munitions during armed conflict. Côte d’Ivoire has been added after it stated in June 2011 that it is contaminated by explosive remnants of war (ERW), including cluster munition remnants.^[2]

States Parties Albania and Zambia declared the completion of clearance of all cluster munition remnants from their territory in November 2009 and June 2010, respectively.

Residual or suspected contamination

Another 14 states may also have a small amount of contamination, including Colombia,^[3] Eritrea, Grenada, Iran, Israel, Kuwait, Mozambique,^[4] Palau,^[5] Saudi Arabia,^[6] and Yemen. Both Argentina and the United Kingdom (UK) claim sovereignty over the Falkland Islands/Malvinas, which may contain areas with unexploded submunitions.^[7] Chile and Jordan may be affected by unexploded submunitions resulting from the use of cluster munitions on training ranges.

Four other states where cluster munitions were used in the past are no longer believed to be contaminated: two are States Parties (Malta and Sierra Leone), one has signed (Uganda), and one has not acceded (Ethiopia). Malta had a small residual threat from cluster munition remnants left from World War II, but, in May 2011, reported there are “no cluster munitions contaminated areas under its jurisdiction or control.”^[8]

Extent of contamination in affected states

The extent of contamination across affected states varies significantly. Ten states and three other areas have the greatest contamination from unexploded submunitions.

Extent of contamination in most heavily affected states and other areas

States Parties

Eight States Parties are contaminated by cluster munition remnants, particularly Lao PDR and Lebanon.

• Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) is contaminated with cluster munition remnants, primarily as a result of the 1992–1995 conflict related to the break-up of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Yugoslav aircraft dropped BL 755 cluster munitions in the early stages of the conflict and states participating in the NATO military action subsequently used cluster munitions.^[9] A general survey completed by Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA) in June 2011 identified 140 areas hit by air strikes and artillery, resulting in an estimated total of 3,774 unexploded submunitions and additional contamination around a former ammunition factory at Pretis that was hit by a NATO air strike. The survey resulted in a significantly higher estimate of contamination of 669 suspected hazardous areas (SHAs) covering a total of more than 12km².^[10]
• Croatia has areas contaminated by cluster munition remnants left over from the conflict in the 1990s. The Croatian Mine Action Centre (CROMAC) informed the Monitor in March 2011 that a general survey conducted in 2010 identified a total area of 6.9km² that is affected by unexploded submunitions.^[11] A total of 28 towns and municipalities across eight counties are impacted; the overwhelming majority (90%) is located in Zadarska county.^[12] In June 2011, however, Croatia stated that a larger area of 9.2km² was affected by some 5,000 unexploded submunitions.^[13]
• Germany in June 2011 announced that it had identified areas suspected of containing cluster munition remnants at a former Soviet military training range at Wittstock in Brandenburg.^[14] The remnants were “principally found within the confines of a target range,” in the south of the training range covering a SHA of some 4km².^[15] Germany did not declare any confirmed or suspected cluster munition contaminated areas in its initial Article 7 report submitted in January 2011.^[16]
• Guinea-Bissau is believed to be contaminated as a result of explosions at ASAs and not from use of cluster munitions during armed conflict.
• Lao PDR is the world’s most heavily cluster munition contaminated country. The United States (US) dropped more than two million tons (2 billion kg) of bombs between 1964 and 1973,^[17] including more than 270 million submunitions. There is no reliable estimate of the extent of residual contamination from unexploded submunitions, but close to 70,000 cluster munition strikes have been identified, each with an average strike “footprint” of 125,000m²; this provides a rough estimate of cluster contamination of 8,750km².^[18] According to the National Regulatory Authority (NRA), 10 of Lao PDR’s 17 provinces are “severely contaminated.”^[19]
• Lebanon’s cluster munition contamination originates primarily from the July–August 2006 conflict with Israel, but parts of the country are affected from cluster munitions used in the 1980s. As of May 2011, 18.1km² of land was suspected to be contaminated by cluster munition remnants, across 758 SHAs.^[20] This represents an increase on the previous estimate of 16km² at the end of 2008, as data received from Israel in 2009 showed 282 previously unknown strike locations.^[21]
• Montenegro did not declare any contaminated areas in its initial Article 7 report, but in July 2011 the director of the Regional Centre for Divers’ Training and Underwater Demining (RCUD) confirmed a possible threat from the presence of unexploded BLU-97 submunitions, mainly at Golubovci airfield near the capital Podgorica.^[22] The contamination, which is estimated to cover 250,000m²,^[23] is said to affect four villages around the airport.^[24]
• Norway reported in January 2011 that the Hjerkinn firing range is contaminated by an estimated 30 unexploded DM 1383/DM 1385 submunitions.^[25] In June 2011, it stated that the affected area was 0.84km².^[26]

Signatories

Eight signatories are believed to be contaminated: Afghanistan, Angola, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Republic of the Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Iraq, and Mauritania.

• Afghanistan has a residual threat from cluster munition remnants primarily from use of air-dropped and rocket-delivered submunitions by Soviet forces. In addition, US aircraft dropped 1,228 cluster munitions containing some 248,056 submunitions between October 2001 and early 2002.^[27] Demining operators continue to encounter both US and Soviet cluster munition remnants.^[28] In June 2011, the Mine Action Coordination Center for Afghanistan (MACCA) identified 24 areas contaminated by cluster munition remnants.^[29]
• Angola’s exact contamination by cluster munition remnants is unclear. As of March 2011, only HALO Trust had reported finding unexploded submunitions since February 2008.^[30] HALO and the National Institute for Demining (INAD) state that unexploded submunitions remain in Kuando Kubango province.^[31] In April 2011, NPA reported that the impact of cluster munition remnants was “very low” in Malanje, Kwanza Sul, Kwanza Norte, Uige, and Zaire provinces.^[32]
• Chad is contaminated by cluster munition remnants, but the precise extent remains to be determined. In December 2008, Chad stated there were “vast swathes of territory” contaminated with “mines and UXO (munitions and submunitions).”^[33] During its recent survey, Mines Advisory Group (MAG) found unexploded Soviet antitank PTAB-1.5 submunitions in an area close to Faya Largeau.^[34]
• The explosive threat in the Republic of the Congo has included cluster munition remnants,^[35] although the extent of any residual contamination is not known.^[36] In July 2010, the Ministry of National Defense reported that some of its stockpiles of Russian cluster munitions exploded during the 1997–1998 civil conflict. At an ammunition storage area at Maya-Maya a member of the armed forces was killed in 2009 after he detonated a submunition.^[37]
• Côte d’Ivoire is contaminated with ERW, including cluster munition remnants.^[38] In June 2011, Côte d’Ivoire stated that a “small quantity” of abandoned cluster munitions had been found in ASAs at Yamoussoukro and San Pedro under the control of the UN Operation in Côte d’Ivoire (UNOCI).^[39]
• In the DRC cluster munition remnants have been found in the provinces of Equateur, Katanga, Maniema, and Orientale, while North Kivu province is also suspected to be contaminated.^[40] In April 2011, the UN Mine Action Coordination Center DR Congo (UNMACC) reported 18 sites in which submunitions had been found, most in Katanga province.^[41] The scale of residual contamination from unexploded submunitions has not yet been quantified.
• Iraq’s precise contamination from cluster munition remnants is unknown, but believed to be significant. During the 1991 Gulf War, the highway between Kuwait and Basra was heavily targeted by cluster bomb strikes.^[42] In northern Iraq (Iraqi Kurdistan), MAG has found cluster munition remnants from when Coalition forces launched cluster strikes around Dohuk in 1991.^[43] Cluster munitions were used extensively during the 2003 invasion of Iraq, particularly around Basra, Nasiriyah, and the approaches to Baghdad. In 2004, Iraq’s National Mine Action Authority identified 2,200 sites of cluster munition contamination along the Tigris and Euphrates river valleys.^[44] Cluster munition remnants are a feature of many of the clearance tasks being undertaken to open up access to oilfields and develop infrastructure, as well as for humanitarian clearance.^[45] In 2010, a MAG survey of Dibis, northwest of Kirkuk, identified 20 previously unknown cluster strikes with contamination from unexploded BLU-97 and BLU-63 submunitions.^[46]
• Mauritania has two areas that are known to contain cluster munition remnants. Both are located approximately 34km north of the village of Bir Mogrein.^[47] Unexploded submunitions to be destroyed in this area are the Mk-118 and BLU-63. The first contaminated area covers approximately 6km², although further survey is likely to reduce the size of the area.^[48] No human casualties have been recorded in the area, but a camel reportedly lost a foot to an unexploded submunition in March 2010.^[49] The second area, which is located nearby, covers some 3km².^[50] It is not yet marked.^[51]

Non-signatories

Several of the 12 contaminated states that have not joined the convention have large clearance programs in place, including Cambodia, Serbia, and Vietnam.

• Cambodia, particularly its eastern and northeastern areas bordering Lao PDR and Vietnam, is affected by between 1.9 million and 5.8 million cluster munition remnants. During the Vietnam War, the US dropped some 26 million explosive submunitions in Cambodia.^[52] In 2010, MAG reported that its two explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) teams destroyed 2,050 submunitions, of which 1,453 were destroyed in just three months of operations in northern Stung Treng province and 597 in eastern Kompong Cham province.^[53] In February 2011, Thailand’s use of cluster munitions in Cambodia’s northern province, Preah Vihear, resulted in additional submunition contamination. An assessment by the Cambodian Mine Action Center and NPA immediately after the shelling identified 12 strike sites and contamination by unexploded submunitions over an area of approximately 1.5km², impacting four villages and affecting between 5,000 and 10,000 people.^[54]
• Libya is the most recent addition to the list of contaminated states, following use of cluster munitions by government forces in April 2011. The precise extent of contamination from cluster munition remnants is not yet known. MAG conducted a rapid assessment of contamination in Misrata at the end of May 2011 and reported, “The presence of UXO and cluster munitions is extensive. … Conclusive evidence of cluster munition use was found at three sites, and the probability of finding additional contamination in other currently inaccessible areas of the city is very high.”^[55] In June 2011, MAG reported that makeshift street “museums” in Misrata were displaying a large and dangerous range of munitions, including unexploded submunitions.^[56]
• Serbia’s significant problem with cluster munition remnants dates from NATO air strikes in 1999, which hit 16 municipalities across the country.^[57] After re-investigating a 30km² area identified as suspected contaminated by a 2008 NPA survey, the Serbian Mine Action Centre (SMAC) confirmed 290 areas as hazardous over an estimated area of 14.9km² and identified 110 SHAs affecting an estimated total of 6.1km² still to verify.^[58] On 29 April 2011, NPA initiated clearance operations in what was planned to be a three-year project.^[59]
• In South Sudan, the world’s newest state, a total of 519 sites containing cluster munition remnants have been identified in six states since 2006. As of June 2011, the number of uncleared sites had been reduced to 34, of which 28 (more than 80%) are in Central and Eastern Equatoria states.^[60] Cluster munition remnants have been found in residential areas, farmland, pasture, rivers and streams, on hillsides, in desert areas, in and around former military barracks, on roads, in minefields, and in ASAs.^[61]
• In Thailand, a survey in 2010 identified contamination by unexploded US Mk-118 submunitions dating back to the Vietnam War in an estimated 315,000m² area in Fakta district of northern Uttaradit province.^[62] The submunitions were apparently dumped by US aircraft returning to bases in Thailand after bombing strikes over Vietnam and Lao PDR.^[63]
• Vietnam is contaminated as a result of an estimated 413,130 tons (4.1 million kg) of submunitions used by the US in 1965–1973.^[64] Cluster munitions were used in 55 provinces and cities, including Haiphong, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hue, and Vinh. Substantial amounts of cluster munitions were abandoned by the US military, notably at or around old US air bases, including eight underground bunkers found in 2009, one of them covering an area of 4,000m² and containing some 25 tons (25,000 kg) of munitions.^[65]

Little is known about the extent of cluster munition contamination in other non-signatories: Azerbaijan, Georgia (South Ossetia), Russia (Chechnya), Tajikistan, and Syria.

Contamination in other areas

• Kosovo is affected by remnants of cluster munitions used by the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia armed forces in 1998–1999 and by the 1999 NATO air campaign. After a UN coordinated demining operation from June 1999 to December 2001, it was reported that “the problems associated with landmines, cluster munitions and other items of unexploded ordnance in Kosovo have been virtually eliminated.”^[66] However, further investigation since then has revealed considerably more contamination.^[67] In March 2011, the Kosovo Mine Action Centre reported 48 areas with confirmed contamination by unexploded submunitions and a further six suspected areas.^[68]
• In Nagorno-Karabakh HALO has reported a significant problem with cluster munition remnants, particularly in the Askeran and Martakert regions. Large quantities of air-dropped cluster munitions were used in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict over a six-year period. Cluster munition sites run through villages and contaminate gardens and prime agricultural land. HALO initially conducted emergency surface clearance of cluster munition remnants, but in 2008 concluded there was also a significant subsurface threat and began to re-survey cluster munition strike sites. Subsurface clearance has consistently resulted in clearing more area than originally estimated to be contaminated and new surveys of previously unknown cluster munition strikes have added to the total SHA.^[69] As of March 2011, an estimated area of 69.5 km² impacting 131 communities required battle area clearance (BAC).^[70]
• Western Sahara has a significant problem with cluster munition remnants. As of March 2011, a total of 85 cluster munition strike sites remained to be cleared from an estimated area of 32.74km².^[71] A Landmine Action-managed survey that concluded at the end of 2008 determined that among the range of explosive ordnance contaminating Western Sahara, unexploded submunitions posed the greatest threat to people and animals.^[72]

Clearance of Cluster Munition Remnants

Reporting by states and operators on clearance of unexploded submunitions is incomplete and of varying quality. Based on available reporting and information gathered directly from programs, the Monitor calculated that in 2010, at least 59,978 unexploded submunitions were destroyed during clearance operations of some 18.55km² of cluster munition contaminated area^[73] in 18 states and three areas (see table below).^[74]

In 2009, at least 38km² of affected land was cleared in 14 states (the majority in Georgia) and in three other areas, resulting in the destruction of 55,156 submunitions. This included Albania, which completed clearance of cluster munition remnants in 2009.

Clearance of cluster munition remnants in 2010

Clearance obligations

Under the Convention on Cluster Munitions, each State Party is obliged to clear and destroy all unexploded submunitions located in areas under its jurisdiction or control as soon as possible, but not later than 10 years after entry into force for that state. If unable to complete clearance in time, a state may request an extension of the deadline for periods of up to five years. Clearance deadlines for States Parties contaminated by cluster munition remnants are shown below.

Article 4 clearance deadlines for States Parties

In seeking to fulfill their clearance and destruction obligations, affected States Parties are required to:

• survey, assess, and record the threat, making every effort to identify all contaminated areas under their jurisdiction or control;
• assess and prioritize needs for marking, protection of civilians, clearance, and destruction;
• take “all feasible steps” to perimeter-mark, monitor, and fence affected areas;
• conduct risk reduction education to ensure awareness among civilians living in or around cluster munition contaminated areas;
• take steps to mobilize the necessary resources (at the national and international levels); and
• develop a national plan, building upon existing structures, experiences, and methodologies.

Land Release, survey, and clearance

During the first intersessional meetings of the convention in June 2011, the CMC published Guiding Principles for Land Release of Cluster Munition-Affected Areas. According to the paper, a baseline assessment of the problem should be the first priority for affected States Parties, which are obliged to “make every effort” to identify cluster munition affected areas under their jurisdiction or control. A key lesson learned regarding implementation of the Mine Ban Treaty is the need for sufficient resources to properly identify affected areas before clearance begins.

The CMC paper recommends that a desk assessment of available information first be conducted to establish an initial understanding of the contamination problem. Then non-technical survey (NTS)^[75] should be used to better identify the “strike footprint” by gathering information in the field through interviews with the local population, military personnel, and other relevant stakeholders. Information garnered from the desk assessment (on weapon delivery systems, ground conditions, battlefield data, etc.) is compared with evidence collected in the field and duplicate or otherwise invalid initially suspected area records can also be cancelled at this point. Technical survey (TS)^[76] more accurately determines the “strike footprint” which is identified by verification of the exact location of the footprint including boundaries of the cluster strike.

In addition, the CMC paper notes that clearance of cluster munition remnants is not mine clearance and should not be regarded as such. The CMC has suggested that states use the basic principles laid out in International Mine Action Standards (IMAS) 09.11 (Battle Area Clearance) to ensure that clearance is done cost-effectively and without excessive layers of measures that limit efficiency without adding safety. When seeking to release land, however, care must be taken to ensure that certain basic principles are followed. In particular, all areas confirmed to be contaminated with cluster munition remnants must be completely cleared, as required by the convention. In addition, the process of releasing land through NTS and TS must be accountable and follow applicable standards and country-specific standing operating procedures.

Clearance by contaminated States Parties

• In BiH in 2010, NPA completed three cluster munition clearance tasks, clearing an area of 88,126m² during which two KB-1 submunitions were found and destroyed.^[77] It also cancelled an area of 151,879m² of previously suspect land through NTS.^[78] In addition, civil protection EOD teams found and destroyed 68 KB-1 submunitions in 2010.^[79]
• Croatia reported one cluster munition clearance task in 2010 in which an area of 68,202m² in Bjelovar-Bilogora county was cleared and seven unexploded MK-1 submunitions were found and destroyed.^[80] A further seven submunitions were destroyed during BAC and EOD tasks.^[81]
• Germany has not yet reported the clearance of any cluster munition remnants.
• In Guinea-Bissau, Cleared Ground Demining (CGD) reported destroying six unexploded PTAB 2.5M submunitions during subsurface clearance at the Paiol da Bra ASA.^[82]
• Lao PDR operators cleared 35km² of land in 2010, destroying 36,888 items of unexploded ordnance (UXO) in the process, including 21,031 unexploded submunitions (called “bombies” locally).^[83] Roving clearance by six operators destroyed another 33,630 items of UXO, including 14,417 unexploded submunitions. The area cleared in 2010 was 5% less than the previous year and more than one-third less than clearance reported in 2008, reflecting the sharp decline in commercial company operations as a result of the global financial crisis. In 2011, commercial operators reported some recovery in activity. Lao PDR’s initial Article 7 report records clearance of a total of 227km² in the period from 1996 to November 2010. In November 2010, NPA released a report on how Lao PDR could meet the convention’s obligations that noted the work “can be done efficiently and it will not take hundreds of years.”^[84]
• In Lebanon, a total of 3.14km² of contaminated land was cleared in 2010, resulting in the destruction of 3,641 unexploded submunitions. This compares to 3.92km² of clearance in 2009, including the destruction of 4,784 unexploded submunitions.^[85] All clearance of cluster munition remnants is now subsurface as well as surface.^[86] Lebanon Mine Action Center (LMAC) director Brigadier-General Mohammed Fehmi, informed the Monitor in May 2011 that it is possible Lebanon could be cleared of the “impact” of all cluster munition remnants by the end of 2015.^[87]
• Montenegro did not report any clearance of cluster munition contaminated area in 2010,^[88] but two unexploded submunitions were destroyed during EOD response.^[89] In June 2011, RCUD said a planned TS of SHAs had not attracted donor support.^[90]
• Norway reported in January 2011 that clearance of the Hjerkinn firing range was ongoing.^[91] In June 2011, it stated that the clearance would be completed by 2013.^[92]

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  [1] Unexploded submunitions are submunitions that have been dispersed and have landed, but have failed to explode as intended. Unexploded bomblets are similar to unexploded submunitions but refer to “explosive bomblets” which have been dropped from a fixed-wing aircraft dispenser but have failed to explode as intended. Failed cluster munitions are cluster munitions that have been dropped or fired but the dispenser has failed to disperse the submunitions as intended. Abandoned cluster munitions are unused cluster munitions that have been left behind or dumped, and are no longer under the control of the party that left them behind or dumped them. See Convention on Cluster Munitions, Article 2, paragraphs 4, 5, 6, 7, and 15.

  [2] It is not known if the contamination includes unexploded submunitions. Statement of Côte d’Ivoire, Convention on Cluster Munitions Intersessional Meetings, Session on Other Implementation Measures, Geneva, 30 June 2011, www.clusterconvention.org.

  [3] In December 2010, the Colombian Air Force stated that cluster munitions were last used in Colombia in October 2006. Presentation on Cluster Munitions by the Colombian Ministry of Defense, Bogota, 9 December 2010.

  [4] In 2010, the NGO APOPO reported finding one dispenser containing 150 submunitions in Gaza province. Response to Monitor questionnaire by Andrew Sully, Programme Manager, APOPO, 3 May 2011.

  [5] CGD, which has been clearing ordnance in Palau since 2009, found a cluster munition remnant in 2010. CGD, “Republic of Palau—2010 Landmine Monitor Clearance Statistics,” undated but 2011. Two unexploded submunitions were found in 2011 as of July. Email from Cassandra McKeown, Finance Director, CGD, 18 July 2011.

  [6] In November 2010, the UK stated that “there is only a very small residual risk that may exist from cluster munitions” and that it had “suitable measures in place to mitigate this.” Statement by Amb. Stephen Lillie, Head of Delegation, Convention on Cluster Munitions First Meeting of States Parties, Vientiane, 9 November 2010. The UK found and destroyed two submunitions during clearance operations in 2009–2010. See “Compliance with Article 4 of the Convention on Cluster Munitions” in ICBL-CMC, “Country Profile: UK: Cluster Munition Ban Policy,” www.the-monitor.org.

  [7] In November 2010, the UK stated that “there is only a very small residual risk that may exist from cluster munitions” and that it had “suitable measures in place to mitigate this.” Statement by UK, Convention on Cluster Munitions First Meeting of States Parties, Vientiane, 9 November 2010. The UK found and destroyed two submunitions during clearance operations in 2009–2010. See ICBL-CMC, “Country Profile: UK: Mine Action,” www.the-monitor.org.

  [8] Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report, Form G, 9 May 2011.

  [9] NPA, “Implementation of the Convention on Cluster Munitions in Bosnia and Herzegovina,” Sarajevo, undated but 2010, provided by email from Darvin Lisica, Programme Manager, NPA, 3 June 2010.

  [10] NPA, “Cluster Munitions Remnants in Bosnia and Herzegovina: A General Survey of Contamination and Impact,” Draft Report, August 2011. Previously, in 2009, NPA had estimated that cluster munitions affected only 1–2km².

  [11] Interview with Miljenko Vahtaric, Assistant Director, and Nataša Matesa Mateković, Head, Planning and Analysis Department, CROMAC, Sisak, 21 March 2011.

  [12] CROMAC, “Plan of humanitarian demining in 2011, Summary,” Sisak, June 2011, p. 1; and interview with Miljenko Vahtaric and Nataša Matesa Mateković, CROMAC, Sisak, 21 March 2011.

  [13] Statement of Croatia, Convention on Cluster Munitions Intersessional Meetings, Session on Clearance and Risk Reduction, Geneva, 28 June 2011.

  [14] Statement of Germany, Mine Ban Treaty Standing Committee on Mine Action, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, Geneva, 21 June 2011.

  [15] Statement of Germany, Convention on Cluster Munitions Intersessional Meetings, Session on Clearance and Risk Reduction, Geneva, 28 June 2011.

  [16] Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report, Form F, 27 January 2011.

  [17] “US bombing records in Laos, 1964–73, Congressional Record,” 14 May 1975.

  [18] Telephone interview with Phil Bean, Technical Advisor, Operations/Quality Assurance, NRA, 24 July 2011.

  [19] The NRA is planning a district-level survey of cluster munition contamination involving three operators (Handicap International [HI], MAG, and NPA) to try to get a more precise determination of the extent of the problem. The survey will be piloted in three districts before broadening, eventually to cover all 85 UXO-affected districts.

  [20] The fluctuating figures are said to be the result of re-surveying the contaminated areas, completion reports, and especially the transmission of strike data by Israel in May 2009. Presentation by Maj. Pierre Bou Maroun, Regional Mine Action Center (RMAC), Nabatiye, 13 May 2011.

  [21] “Eleventh report of the Secretary-General on the implementation of Security Council resolution 1701 (2006),” (New York: UN Security Council, 2 November 2009), UN doc. S/2009/566, p. 11.

  [22] Telephone interviews with Veselin Mijajlovic, Director, RCUD, 19 and 25 July 2011.

  [23] “Field of Golubovac, Reconnaissance, Survey, and Removal of Cluster Bombs, Estimated Expenses,” Podgorica, 21 February 2009, received by email from Veselin Mijajlovic, RCUD, 26 March 2009.

  [24] Interview with Borislav Miskovic, Head of EOD Team, Montenegro Police Force, Podgorica, 16 March 2008.

  [25] Convention on Cluster Munitions Article 7 Report, Form F, 27 January 2011.

  [26] Statement of Norway, Convention on Cluster Munitions Intersessional Meetings, Session on Clearance and Risk Reduction, Geneva, 28 June 2011. Notes by the CMC.

  [27] Human Rights Watch and Landmine Action, Banning Cluster Munitions: Government Policy and Practice (Ottawa: Mines Action Canada, May 2009), p. 27.

  [28] Interviews with demining operators, Kabul, 12–18 June 2010. In 2009, HALO cleared 2,607 unexploded submunitions. Email from Ollie Pile, Weapons and Ammunition Disposal Officer, HALO, 30 June 2009; and email from Tom Dibb, Desk Officer, HALO, 3 June 2010.

  [29] The remaining areas are located in insecure areas such as Registan in Kandahar and Zurmat in Paktia, which will be cleared when security conditions allow. MACCA, “Fact sheet on Cluster munitions in Afghanistan,” June 2011, www.macca.org.af.

  [30] Email from Ken O’Connell, Country Director, Stiftung Menschen gegen Minen (MgM), 5 June 2010; email from J. P. Botha, Technical Operations Manager, MAG, 21 February 2011; email from Fatmire Uka, Operations Manager, DanChurchAid (DCA), 7 March 2011; email from Aubrey Sutherland, Programme Manager, Mine Action, NPA, 1 March 2011; and email from Helen Tirebuck, Programme Manager, HALO, 15 March 2011.

  [31] Interview with Jose Antonio, Site Manager, Kuando Kubango, HALO, Menongue, 24 June 2011; and interview with Coxe Sucama, Director, INAD, Menongue, 24 June 2011.

  [32] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Aubrey Sutherland, NPA, 1 March 2011.

  [33] Statement of Chad, Convention on Cluster Munitions Signing Conference, Oslo, 3 December 2008.

  [34] Email from Liebeschitz Rodolphe, Chief Technical Advisor, UNDP, 21 February 2011; and email from Bruno Bouchardy, Program Manager, MAG Chad, 11 March 2011.

  [35] MAG, “Where we work: MAG ROC in depth,” November 2009, www.maginternational.org.

  [36] Email from Frédéric Martin, Programme Manager, MAG, 1 February 2010.

  [37] Email from Lt.-Col. André Pamphile Serge Oyobe, Head of Information Division, Ministry of National Defense, 13 July 2010.

  [38] Statement of Côte d’Ivoire, Convention on Cluster Munitions Intersessional Meetings, Session on Other Implementation Measures, Geneva, 30 June 2011, www.clusterconvention.org.

  [39] Ibid.

  [40] Email from Charles Frisby, Chief of Staff, UNMACC, 30 March 2011.

  [41] Ibid, 21 April 2011.

  [42] UNICEF/UNDP, “Overview of Landmines and Explosive Remnants of War in Iraq,” June 2009, p. 10.

  [43] Zana Kaka, “IRAQ: Saving lives of returnees in Dohuk,” MAG, 28 May 2010, www.maginternational.org.

  [44] Landmine Action, “Explosive remnants of war and mines other than anti-personnel mines,” London, March 2005, p. 86.

  [45] Telephone interview with Kent Paulusson, Senior Mine Action Advisor for Iraq, UNDP, 28 July 2011.

  [46] Cuts in funding resulted in MAG standing down these two teams in May 2011. Response to Monitor questionnaire by Mark Thompson, Country Programme Manager, MAG, 23 July 2011.

  [47] Observations during Monitor field mission, Bir Mogrein, 26 April 2010.

  [48] Ibid.

  [49] Discussions with local risk education focal points, Bir Mogrein, 26 April 2010.

  [50] Email from Alioune O. Mohamed El Hacen, Coordinator, National Humanitarian Demining Program for Development, 20 April 2011.

  [51] Ibid, 2 May 2011.

  [52] South East Asia Air Sortie Database, cited in Dave McCracken, “National Explosive Remnants of War Study, Cambodia,” NPA in collaboration with the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority, Phnom Penh, March 2006, p. 15; Human Rights Watch, “Cluster Munitions in the Asia-Pacific Region,” April 2008, www.hrw.org; and HI, Fatal Footprint: The Global Human Impact of Cluster Munitions (HI: Brussels, November 2006), p. 11.

  [53] Emails from Lauren Cobham, Programme Officer, MAG, 12 April and 1 August 2011.

  [54] Three kinds of submunitions were used: M42, M46, and M85. Aina Ostreng, “Norwegian People’s Aid clears cluster bombs after clash in Cambodia,” NPA, 19 May 2011, www.folkehjelp.no. NPA said evidence in the area suggested about one in five of the submunitions had failed to detonate. Thomas Miller, “Banks tied to cluster bombs named,” Phnom Penh Post, 26 May 2011, accessed at www.phnompenhpost.com.

  [55] MAG, “Libya: Assessment mission shows need for urgent response in Misrata,” 1 June 2011, www.maginternational.org.

  [56] MAG, “Libya: Remnants of conflict continue to pose huge threat to civilians,” 22 June 2011, www.maginternational.org.

  [57] Statement of Serbia, Mine Ban Treaty Standing Committee on Mine Clearance, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, Geneva, 21 June 2011; and interview with Petar Mihajlović, Director, and Slađana Košutić, International Cooperation Advisor, SMAC, Belgrade, 25 March 2011.

  [58] Ibid.

  [59] Email from Vanessa Finson, Desk Officer, NPA, 16 August 2011.

  [60] Email from Mohamed Kabir, Chief Information Officer, UN Mine Action Office (UNMAO), 2 February 2011.

  [61] The locations are based on a review of cluster munition sites in the UNMAO database by the Monitor.

  [62] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Lt. Gen. Attanop Sirisak, Director General, Thailand Mine Action Center, 20 May 2011.

  [63] Email from Amornchai Sirisai, Advisor, Thai Civilian Deminers Association, 23 March 2011.

  [64] Vietnam’s Military Engineering Command has recorded finding 15 types of US-made submunitions. “Vietnam mine/ERW (including cluster munitions) contamination, impacts and clearance requirements,” Presentation by Sr. Col. Phan Duc Tuan, People’s Army of Vietnam, Geneva, 30 June 2011.

  [65] Interview with Sr. Col. Phan Duc Tuan, People’s Army of Vietnam, Geneva, 30 June 2011.

  [66] “UNMIK Mine Action Programme Annual Report—2001,” Mine Action Coordination Cell, Pristina, undated but 2002, p.1.

  [67] See, for example, HALO, “Failing the Kosovars: The Hidden Impact and Threat from ERW,” 15 December 2006, p. 1.

  [68] Email from Ahmet Sallova, Head, Kosovo Mine Action Centre, Ministry of the Kosovo Security Force, 3 March 2011.

  [69] Email from Andrew Moore, Caucasus and Balkans Desk Officer, HALO, 28 April 2010.

  [70] Ibid, 9 March 2011.

  [71] Email from Ginevra Cucinotta, Program Officer, Mine Action Coordination Center, UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara, 25 March 2011.

  [72] Email from Melissa Fuerth, Operations Officer, Landmine Action, 20 February 2009.

  [73] This is certainly a very significant underestimate. Areas where cluster munition remnants were cleared in the course of general BAC and where clearance of cluster munition contaminated areas is not disaggregated from that general BAC, no figure is included as area cleared of cluster munition remnants. This is the case for Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Vietnam, which destroyed a total of more than 40,000 unexploded submunitions in 2010.

  [74] Afghanistan, Angola, BiH, Cambodia, Croatia, DRC, Guinea-Bissau, Iraq, Lao PDR, Lebanon, Montenegro, Mozambique, Palau, Serbia, Tajikistan, the UK, Vietnam, and Zambia. The three other areas were Kosovo, Nagorno-Karabakh, and Western Sahara.

  [75] NTS is defined by the relevant IMAS as survey that involves “collecting and analysing new and/or existing information about a hazardous area. Its purpose is to confirm whether there is evidence of a hazard or not, to identify the type and extent of hazards within any hazardous area and to define, as far as is possible, the perimeter of the actual hazardous areas without physical intervention. A non-technical survey does not normally involve the use of clearance or verification assets. Exceptions occur when assets are used for the sole purpose of providing access for non-technical survey teams. The results from a non-technical survey can replace any previous data relating to the survey of an area.” UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS), “IMAS 08.21: Non-Technical Survey”, First Edition, New York, June 2009, pp. 1–2, www.mineactionstandards.org.

  [76] IMAS defines TS as “a detailed intervention with clearance or verification assets into a CHA [confirmed hazardous area], or part of a CHA. It should confirm the presence of mines/ERW leading to the definition of one or more DHA [defined hazardous area] and may indicate the absence of mines/ERW which could allow land to be released when combined with other evidence.” UNMAS, “IMAS 08.20: Land release,” First Edition, New York, June 2009, p. 2, www.mineactionstandards.org.

  [77] Telephone interview with Milan Rezo, Deputy Director, BiH Mine Action Center (BHMAC), 1 August 2011; and email from Zeljko Djogo, Planning Sector, BHMAC, 1 August 2011.

  [78] Ibid.

  [79] Ibid.

  [80] Interview with Miljenko Vahtaric and Nataša Matesa Mateković, CROMAC, Sisak, 21 March 2011.

  [81] Email from Miljenko Vahtaric, CROMAC, 30 March 2011.

  [82] Email from Cassandra McKeown, CGD, 28 April 2011.

  [83] NRA, “1 January 2010 to 31 December 2010 UXO operations in Lao PDR,” received by email from Bounpheng Sisawath, Programme and Public Relations Officer, NRA, 25 May 2011.

  [84] NPA, “Fulfilling the Clearance Obligations of the Convention on Cluster Munitions in Lao PDR: The NPA Perspective,” undated but November 2010, p. 4.

  [85] Presentation by Maj. Pierre Bou Maroun, RMAC, Nabatiye, 13 May 2011.

  [86] Presentations by Maj. Pierre Bou Maroun, RMAC, Nabatiye, 13 May 2011; Tamer Said, Field Operations Officer, DCA, Tyre, 14 May 2011; Houmine Al Fawka, Site Manager, Swiss Foundation for Mine Action; Mustafa Salih, Site Manager, Marjeyoun, MAG, 16 May 2011; and John Hare, Operations Officer, HI, Toula, 18 May 2011.

  [87] Interview with Brig.-Gen. Mohammed Fehmi, LMAC, Beirut, 12 May 2011.

  [88] Telephone interview with Veselin Mijajlovic, RCUD, 17 June 2011.

  [89] Email from Nemanja Djurovic, Information Department, Ministry of Internal Affairs, 22 June 2011; and telephone interview with Zoran Begovic, Assistant to the Minister, Ministry of Interior Affairs and Public Administration, 21 June 2011.

  [90] Telephone interviews with Veselin Mijajlovic, RCUD, 17 June and 19 July 2011.

  [91] Convention on Cluster Munition Article Article 7 Report, Form F, 29 April 2011.

  [92] Statement of Norway, Convention on Cluster Munitions Intersessional Meetings, Session on Clearance and Risk Reduction, Geneva, 28 June 2011. Notes by the CMC.