Final Talks on Cluster Munition Ban Treaty

Some countries will likely lobby to exempt certain weapons from the treaty, to insert a transition period postponing the ban for several years, or to secure the ability to assist others using cluster munitions in joint military operations.  
 
As it stands, the draft treaty is a strong, comprehensive ban on cluster munitions. Any attempts to water it down should be rejected completely, said Steve Goose, director of the Arms division at Human Rights Watch and co-chair of the international Cluster Munition Coalitionhref>. Those kinds of revisions will only undermine the intended purpose of the ban, which is to save lives.  
 
Cluster munitions are large weapons that open in mid-air and randomly scatter dozens or hundreds of individual submunitions (or bomblets) over a large area. Countries are agreeing to ban them because they kill and injure too many civilians during combat due to their wide area effect, and continue to pose a threat long after an attack because so many fail to explode on impact but remain dangerous, functioning like antipersonnel mines.  
 
The draft treaty prohibits the use, production, and trade of cluster munitions, and establishes a six-year deadline for the destruction of all existing stocks of the weapon. But it also goes far beyond the ban by requiring the clearance of contaminated areas with a deadline as well as assistance to victims and affected communities.  

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