Marshall Islands
Mine Action
Mine Ban Policy
Mine ban policy overview
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Mine Ban Treaty status |
Signatory |
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Pro-mine ban UNGA voting record |
Voted in favor of Resolution 64/56 in December 2009, for the fifth consecutive year |
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Participation in Mine Ban Treaty meetings |
Did not participate in the Second Review Conference in November–December 2009 |
Policy
The Republic of the Marshall Islands signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 4 December 1997, but has yet to ratify it. In October 2009, a representative of the Marshall Islands said that the country’s November 2009 ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty would help clear the way for the government to tackle ratification of the Mine Ban Treaty.[1]
In 2008, the Marshall Islands re-engaged in the Mine Ban Treaty process, but did not commit to ratify within a specific period.[2] In June 2008, the Marshall Islands said that it could not provide “a timeline or detailed approach” for ratification due to “limited technical capacity” and pressing demands including climate change.[3] In November 2008, a representative of the Marshall Islands said that the government strongly supported the goals and objectives of the Mine Ban Treaty, but cited its relationship with the United States and the burden of treaty participation on small states as principal reasons for not ratifying.[4]
The Marshall Islands confirmed in June 2008 that it has not produced landmines and has no known stockpiles.[5]
The Marshall Islands is not party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons.
[1]ICBL meeting with Caleb Christopher, Counsellor, Permanent Mission of the Marshall Islands to the UN, New York, 16 October 2009. See ICBL, “Report on CMC/ICBL Lobby Meetings: UNGA First Committee on Disarmament and International Security, New York, 12–23 October 2009.”
[2] The Marshall Islands attended the Ninth Meeting of States Parties in Geneva in November 2008, the regional workshop on the Mine Ban Treaty convened by Palau in August 2008, and the intersessional Standing Committee meetings in Geneva in June 2008. These meetings marked the country’s re-engagement on a ban on landmines; it had last attended a Mine Ban Treaty meeting in 1997.
[3] Statement by Rina Tareo, Chargé d’Affaires, Permanent Mission of the Marshall Islands to the UN, Standing Committee on the General Status and Operation of the Convention, Geneva, 2 June 2008. See also, Landmine Monitor Report 2008, p. 787.
[4] Statement by Rina Tareo, Permanent Mission of the Marshall Islands to the UN, Ninth Meeting of States Parties, Geneva, 26 November 2008.
[5] Statement by Rina Tareo, Permanent Mission of the Marshall Islands to the UN, Standing Committee on the General Status and Operation of the Convention, Geneva, 2 June 2008.