Ministry Statements & Speeches:
Thank you, President.
Congratulations on your assumption of the Presidency.
Please allow me to reaffirm New Zealand’s unwavering commitment to the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention. We are glad for the opportunity this week to discuss how to best protect and enhance the Convention, and the norm against anti-personnel – or AP – mines it embodies.
We are thrilled that since our last Review Conference in Siem Reap, the Republic of the Marshall Islands has ratified the Convention. We congratulate the government and the people of Marshall Islands on this achievement.
We also note that the Kingdom of Tonga has announced its intention to ratify the Convention. We look forward to welcoming Tonga to the Convention soon.
And we echo the joint Pacific statement delivered by Australia, which highlights the Pacific region’s commitment to a mine-free world.
Unfortunately, since our last meeting there have also been alarming developments for universalisation, with Lithuania, Poland, Estonia, Latvia, and Finland undertaking domestic processes to withdraw from the Convention. New Zealand acknowledges the significant security concerns that Russia’s illegal full-scale invasion has raised, and which we continue to condemn unequivocally. Nevertheless, we urge these States to reconsider withdrawing, and to remain Party to the Convention, including to safeguard the protection of your own civilians over the long-term. In 2023, 84% of all recorded casualties from AP mines were civilians. It is New Zealand’s view that this pattern of harm far outweighs any military utility of AP mines. And the fact remains that these victim-activated weapons are highly likely to be indiscriminate in their effects.
Negotiations to agree the APMBC were prompted by extensive evidence about the harms these weapons caused to civilians during and following conflicts across the globe, and the kinds of injury and disability AP mines inflict on soldiers. In a more contested and insecure security environment, remaining steadfast supporters of the Convention is critical for upholding the international rules-based system, for ensuring the protection of civilians including children, and for the regulation of conduct during conflict. As the ICRC often reminds us, even wars have laws.
We have seen this week that the vast majority of States continue to support the Convention and its aims. We have heard updates from many States Parties on their continued implementation of its Articles, including those States Parties which submitted extension requests, and we commend those States. We sincerely hope that the number of countries afflicted by mine contamination will not increase as a result of the announced withdrawals.
Thank you.