Palau

Key developments since May 2006: For the first time Palau voted in favor of the annual UN General Assembly resolution promoting the Mine Ban Treaty.

The Republic of Palau has not yet acceded to the Mine Ban Treaty, but it has given many indications of its desire to join.^[1] One difficulty in joining has been the country’s 1994 Compact of Free Association with the United States, a treaty non-signatory. The two countries are in negotiations to renew the economic component of the Compact, which expires in 2009, and Palau has indicated it may be difficult to join the Mine Ban Treaty until the financial package has been extended.^[2]

In May 2007 Palau attended a Pacific-wide Mine Ban Treaty workshop in Port Vila, Vanuatu, and spoke of its commitment to the Mine Ban Treaty and intent to accede, but also difficulties encountered with the United States, as noted above.^[3]

Palau participated in the treaty’s intersessional Standing Committee meetings in Geneva in April 2007. It stated that it intends to join the treaty in the “nearer future” and already “views itself as [bound] by the Convention” and will “conform to the Convention’s terms.”^[4]

On 6 December 2006 Palau voted in favor of UN General Assembly Resolution 61/84 calling for universalization and full implementation of the Mine Ban Treaty. This was the first time Palau supported the annual resolution. It abstained in 2004 and 2005, and was absent from the votes before that.

In September 2006 Palau attended as an observer the Seventh Meeting of States Parties in Geneva. It said that it is not yet a State Party “because of Palau’s mutual defense treaty with a superpower.” But it went on to say, “Palau can now sign up to the Convention. After a thorough analysis of Palau’s Compact of Free Association…it is clear that accession to the Ottawa Convention…would not be in contradiction with United States’ responsibilities, under the Compact of Free Association, for defense and security.”^[5]

Palau stated in April 2007 that it does not produce or store antipersonnel mines.^[6]

Palau is not party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons.

In May 2007 Palau said that unexploded ordnance (UXO) continues to pose a threat. It said that no one has died from UXO, but “farmers face a problem from this.”^[7] Palau told States Parties in November 2005 that there is UXO still to be found in many of Palau’s 200 islands, and stated that the government will be seeking international expertise to find and neutralize these munitions.^[8]

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