Norwegian presidency of the Mine Ban Treaty
Historical archive
Published under: Solberg's Government
Publisher: Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Norway holds the presidency of the Mine Ban Treaty for 2019. As part of its global humanitarian engagement, Norway is working to combat the use of weapons that have particularly severe consequences for civilians. Norway played a key role in the process leading to the adoption of the Mine Ban Treaty (Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction), which was adopted in Oslo in September 1997. Norway also played a leading role in ensuring the adoption of the Convention on Cluster Munitions, which was signed in Oslo in December 2008.
Norwegian presidency of the Mine Ban Treaty
On 30 November 2018, Norway took over the presidency of the Mine Ban Treaty from Afghanistan. Norway will seek to bring renewed political attention and momentum to the work carried out under the Treaty, at a time when major humanitarian crises around the world are placing huge demands on donor funding for post-conflict mine clearance.
Norway’s engagement in global mine clearance
18 September 2017 marked the 20th anniversary of the adoption of the Mine Ban Treaty in Oslo, and 1 March 2019 will mark the 20th anniversary of its entry into force. Norway’s main focus is on humanitarian mine clearance to protect civilians. This means that our funding is channelled through huma-nitarian organisations. We work in direct partnership with mine clearance operators at country level.
The Mine Ban Treaty - a fact sheet
The Mine Ban Treaty (MBT) is the international agreement that pro-hibits anti-personnel mines. Its official title is the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction. The text of the MBT was adopted at a conference in Oslo on 18 September 1997. On 3 December the same year, the Treaty was signed by a total of 122 countries in Ottawa.
Current
Provides NOK 345 million for mine clearance
‘It is difficult to say how many lives the Mine Ban Treaty has saved, but we know that each of the nearly 52 million stockpiled anti-personnel mines that have so far been destroyed as a result of the Treaty had the potential to maim or kill,’ Minister of Foreign Affairs Ine Eriksen Søreide said.
Norway assumes presidency of the Mine Ban Treaty
On 30 November, Norway takes over the presidency of the Mine Ban Treaty. ‘During our presidency, we will highlight the huge risk to civilians posed by anti-personnel mines and explosives in many countries, and the major social and economic consequences this has,’ said Minister of Foreign Affairs Ine Eriksen Søreide.