Author/Origin: Mark Hiznay hiznaym@hrw.org

(Sunday 27 June 2004 Geneva, Switzerland) The Standing Committee on Stockpile Destruction is co-chaired by Italy and Guatemala. The co-rapporteurs are Bangladesh and Canada.

ICBL Presentations

Steve Goose, head of the ICBL delegation, gave an overview on antipersonnel mine stockpile destruction.

Key discussions

Destruction updates from 20 State Parties:
Tajikistan, Romania, Lithuania, Honduras, Suriname, Nigeria, Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola, Bangladehs, Belarus, Burundi, Colombia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Greece, Guinea Bissau, Mauritania, Serbia and Montenegro, Tanzania, Zambia.

Highlights for the ICBL

• Tanzania, Zambia, Guinea-Bissau and Colombia will complete stockpile destruction prior to the Nairobi Summit.
• Romania, Tajikistan, Lithuania and Suriname have finished destroying their stockpiles.
• Turkmenistan will have destroyed 6,631,771 antipersonnel mines (including 5.4 million PFM mines) by the Nairobi Summit.

Concerns for the ICBL

• Algeria and Bangladesh need to commence destruction operations (Bangladesh's deadline is March 2005).
• Lithuania converting OZM-72 bounding fragmentation mines into command detonated munitions.

Quote of the day

"4 million Euros should be a sufficient enough guarantee!" (Daniella Decorada from the European Commission, referring to the Ukraine's PFM stockpile destruction and ratification of the Mine Ban Treaty).