27-30 May 2013, Geneva, Switzerland

The meeting of Intersessional Standing Committees (ISC) of the Mine Ban Treaty (MBT) took place between 27-30 May 2013 at the WMO building in Geneva, Switzerland. The meeting included a workshop on victim assistance, which took place 30-31 May.

See also the 2013 Intersessional webpage on the official convention website.

What are ISC meetings about?

The meeting of Intersessional Standing Committees (ISC) of the Mine Ban Treaty (MBT) took place between 27-30 May 2013 at the WMO building in Geneva, Switzerland. The meeting included a workshop on victim assistance, which took place 30-31 May.

The meetings of the Standing Committees serve as the center piece of the Intersessional Work Programme established in 1999 at the First Meeting of the States Parties.

The ISC meetings provide an opportunity for states to report on the recent progress they have made to implement the MBT and the Cartagena Action Plan (CAP). The meetings also provide a platform for informal discussion on challenges, plans and requirements for assistance and cooperation to achieve the objectives of the treaty. This intersessional meeting falls just over a year in advance of the Third Review Conference of the Treaty that will take place mid 2014 in Mozambique and which represents a major milestone in the life of the Treaty.

The ISC meetings are open to States Parties, states not party, relevant international organizations and non-governmental organizations.

What are states expected to do at the ISC?

• States Parties should prepare progress reports on all relevant areas of the MBT, making sure to clearly provide information on what has been achieved in the past year, what remains to be done, plans for the future, and any needs for cooperation and assistance.
• States not party to the MBT are expected to report on steps that have taken to join the treaty.
• States are expected to condemn any new use of antipersonnel mines, and to highlight the fact that the use of landmines is unacceptable under any circumstances.
• States should also contribute to any other item on the agenda where they have expertise, questions, or observations to share throughout the ISC meetings.
• All states should set concrete goals to be achieved by the next Review Conference, on the treaty’s implementation or universalization, and work diligently towards them.

Supporting documents for ICBL members

Every year the ICBL actively participates in these meetings, delivering expert statements, making the voice of mine survivors heard, organizing side events and providing information online and to the media on progress being made to eradicate landmines once and for all.

ICBL Statements

ICBL Statement on Universalisation
ICBL Statement on Compliance
ICBL Statement on Transparency
ICBL Statement on Stockpile Destruction
ICBL Comments and Questions on Mine Clearance
ICBL Statement on Victim Assistance (English)
ICBL Statement on Victim Assistance (French)
ICBL Statement on International Cooperation and Assistance
ICBL Comments on Extension Requests

Monitor Fact Sheets

Mine Ban Treaty Transparency Reporting (Article 7)
Mines Retained for Training and Research (Article 3)
International Support for Mine Action
Mine Action Updates:
Afghanistan
Angola
Cambodia
Colombia
Physical Accessibility for Landmine Survivors

Article 5 Extension Request Critiques

ICBL responses and critiques to the states that have submitted deadline extension requests to date in 2013:
Chad (English, Francais)
Serbia
Sudan
Turkey
In addition, Germany submitted a request for an extended deadline, following a newly established procedure for States Parties that discover mined areas after their deadline has passed.

ICBL Social Media

ICBL Flickr gallery from the MBT ISC