Summary: State Party Sweden ratified the convention on 23 April 2012, three weeks after enacting implementing legislation for the convention. Sweden has participated in all of the convention’s meetings and elaborated its views on several important issues for the convention’s interpretation and implementation. It has condemned the use of cluster munitions several times since 2015. Sweden was a lead sponsor on a UN resolution on the convention in December 2015.

In its initial transparency report for the convention provided in 2013, Sweden confirmed it produced cluster munitions in the past. Sweden completed the destruction of its stockpile of 370 cluster munitions and 20,595 submunitions in April 2015, and has retained 125 submunitions for training and research purposes.

Policy

The Kingdom of Sweden signed the Convention on Cluster Munitions on 3 December 2008, ratified on 23 April 2012, and the convention entered into force for the country on 1 October 2012.

Law 179 on “Penalties for Illicit Dealing with Cluster Munitions” enacted on 4 April 2012 serves as Sweden’s implementing legislation for the ban convention and provides sanctions for violations.[1]

Sweden submitted its initial Article 7 transparency report for the Convention on Cluster Munitions on 25 March 2013 and has provided annual updated reports ever since, most recently on 7 April 2016.[2]

Sweden actively engaged in the Oslo Process that created the Convention on Cluster Munitions and its position changed considerably to support the adoption of the convention in Dublin in May 2008. Sweden decided to sign the convention in Oslo in December 2008, although apparently only after hesitation and deliberation over the cost implications of destroying its stockpile of cluster munitions.[3]

Sweden engages actively in the work of the Convention on Cluster Munitions. It participated in the convention’s First Review Conference in Dubrovnik, Croatia in September 2015.[4] In its statement to the high-level segment of the meeting, Sweden announced the completion of the destruction of its stockpiled cluster munitions five years in advance of the deadline.

Sweden has attended every Meeting of States Parties of the convention as well as intersessional meetings in Geneva in 2011–June 2015. Sweden served as the first co-coordinator of the convention’s work on international cooperation and assistance in 2012–2014, together Mexico and then Chile.

Sweden was a lead sponsor on and voted in favor of a UN General Assembly (UNGA) resolution on the convention, which urges all states not party to the convention to “join as soon as possible.”[5] A total of 139 states voted to adopt the non-binding resolution on 7 December 2015, including many non-signatories.

Sweden has expressed concern at new use of cluster munitions on several occasions since Margot Wallström became the Minister for Foreign Affairs in late 2014.[6] In an address to the Conference on Disarmament on 2 March 2015, Wallström expressed Sweden’s deep concern at the use of cluster munitions, which she described as “unacceptable.”[7]

In its statement to the high-level segment of the First Review Conference in September 2015, Sweden said:

Like others, we are deeply concerned about recent reports on the use of cluster munitions in different parts of the world. Sweden joins those expressing deep concern about reports of the use of cluster munitions affecting civilian populations. Our Foreign Minister recently stated that such use of cluster munitions is unacceptable, and called on all actors to strictly observe International Humanitarian Law.[8]

At the UNGA First Committee on Disarmament and International Security in October 2015, Sweden expressed concern at the use of cluster munitions in ongoing conflicts and affirmed, “We fully share the goals of the Convention banning this inhumane weapon.”[9] Sweden has also voted in favor of UNGA resolutions condemning the use of cluster munitions in Syria, most recently in December 2015.[10]

Sweden is a State Party to the Mine Ban Treaty. It is also a party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons.

Interpretive issues

Sweden has elaborated its views on certain important issues related to interpretation and implementation of the convention.

On the prohibition on assistance with prohibited acts in joint military operations, a 2011 government report states that, “Article 21(3) makes clear that States Parties can participate in military cooperation and military operations with states not party to the Convention and which may engage in activities that are prohibited for a State Party. This does not imply any right of States Parties in these situations to violate the obligations of Article 1 of the convention or to explicitly request that cluster munitions shall be used in situations where the State Party has exclusive control over the selection of the munition used.”[11]

Sweden’s 2011 ratification legislation elaborates the government’s views that “it should initially be stressed that the risk of cluster munitions being used in international peacekeeping missions where Sweden contributes ought to be limited” and that “the government considers that the provisions in Articles 21(3) and 21(4) reflect a relatively clear consideration of the two interests at hand, on the one hand the interest of upholding the prohibition in the convention, also in the case of military cooperation, and on the other hand, the interest of not hindering this cooperation.”[12]

The 2011 government report also noted that in relation to Article 1(1)(c) of the convention on the prohibition of assistance, encouragement, or inducement of any act prohibited by the convention, such acts would be essentially regarded as “incitement” or “complicity” under chapter 23 of Sweden’s penal code. The report, therefore, holds that no specific domestic regulations are necessary to meet this obligation of the Convention on Cluster Munitions.[13]

A 2012 parliamentary report articulates the views of the government on the issues of transit of cluster munitions and investment in cluster munition production.[14] According to the report, Sweden does not consider the transit of cluster munitions across the territory of States Parties to be prohibited under the convention, but any allegations or complaints in this regard shall be put forward to the national courts for decision.[15]

Sweden has not made an explicit statement on the issue of the prohibition on foreign stockpiling of cluster munitions. However, in the 2011 ratification package, the government stated that “stockpiling, transport, and other handling of cluster munitions could occur in the occasion of military cooperation with states that are not parties to the convention, typically when the latter has a military base, a military ship, or aircraft on the territory of a state party. These activities could also occur during an international mission where military forces from many nations take part and where weapons and ammunition are supplied through common logistical functions.”[16]

The 2012 parliamentary report expresses the Swedish government’s view that the Convention on Cluster Munitions does not prohibit the investment in cluster munition production. According to the report, Sweden does not see the need for additional legislation prohibiting investment in companies that produce cluster munitions, but it believes it is important that ethical investment strategies are developed.[17] Since the convention was adopted in May 2008, several Swedish financial institutions have taken action to disinvest from companies involved in the production of cluster munitions.[18] In 2011 and 2012, the Green Party (Miljöpartiet), the Left Party (Vänsterpartiet), and the Social Democrats submitted parliamentary motions to prohibit transit and investment that were rejected.[19]

Use and transfer

According to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, “Sweden has never used or transferred cluster munitions as defined in the Convention [on Cluster Munitions].”[20] Its Article 7 reports affirm, “Sweden has never used any cluster munitions.”[21]

Production

Sweden’s initial transparency report provided in March 2013 listed two former cluster munition producers in the section on the conversion or decommissioning of production facilities: SAAB Aerotech and EADS/LFK.[22] Both companies were involved producing the Bombkapsel BK-M90 Mjölner dispenser, which contains MJ-1 fragmentation submunitions and MJ-2 anti-armor proximity-fuzed submunitions.[23] For SAAB Aerotech, Sweden reported: “No conversion or decommissioning needed. Existing tools are used for the dismantling.” For EADS/LFK, it reported: “The final delivery of BK-M90 to the Swedish Armed Forces was done 1997 by EADS/LFK. EADS/LFK is informed that BK-M90/DWS39 is phased out.”[24]

Stockpiling and destruction

Before the Convention on Cluster Munitions entered into force for Sweden on 1 October 2012, it possessed a total of 370 BK M90 Cluster Munitions containing a total of 20,595 explosive submunitions of two types (17,660 MJ-1 submunitions and 2,935 MJ-2 submunitions).[25]

Under Article 3 of the Convention on Cluster Munitions, Sweden was required to declare and destroy all stockpiled cluster munitions under its jurisdiction and control as soon as possible, but not later than 1 October 2020.

Sweden completed its stockpile destruction on 13 April 2015 and formally announced the completion of destruction at the First Review Conference in September 2015.[26]

During 2015, Sweden destroyed 180 cluster munitions and 8,431 submunitions (7,260 MJ-1 and 1,171 MJ-2 submunitions).[27]

Sweden destroyed 111 BK-M90 cluster munition dispensers before the 1 October 2012 entry into force of the convention for Sweden and another 259 BK-M90 dispensers after entry into force.[28]

The BK-M90 were dismantled at SAAB Aerotech’s facilities in Arboga; its metallic hull and ejection modules were sent to the company Kuusakoski in Skelleftehamn for defragmentation; and the batteries were activated, discharged, and sent to the company Sakab AB in Kumla for final storage. The MJ-1 and MJ-2 submunitions transferred to in Norway, where they were destroyed by controlled underground detonation by Nammo Vingåker AB.

Sweden has reported that the estimated total cost of the stockpile destruction at SEK37 million or US$5.4 million.[29]

Retention

In its initial Article 7 report, Sweden declared it was retaining 125 submunitions for training and research purposes.[30] It has reported the same number in all its transparency reports since 2013, indicating that none have been used or consumed.[31]

Sweden has described the retained submunitions as necessary “for training personnel in destruction techniques on live ammunition” and views such training with live explosives as “crucial.”[32]