{"id":1509,"date":"2018-09-22T12:33:58","date_gmt":"2018-09-22T16:33:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wvcbl.org\/?page_id=1509"},"modified":"2026-09-08T11:48:33","modified_gmt":"2026-09-08T15:48:33","slug":"landmine-and-cluster-munitions-monitor","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/wvcbl.org\/?page_id=1509","title":{"rendered":"LANDMINE AND CLUSTER MUNITIONS MONITOR"},"content":{"rendered":"

DE FACTO<\/em>\u00a0MONITORING OF THE MINE BAN TREATY AND CONVENTION ON CLUSTER MUNITIONS<\/h4>\n

Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor is an initiative providing research for the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) and the Cluster Munition Coalition (CMC). It produces several research products including the annual\u00a0Landmine Monitor<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0Cluster Munition Monitor\u00a0<\/em>reports, online country profile reports, as well as fact sheets and maps.<\/p>\n

\"1<\/p>\n

Cluster Munition Monitor report 2026: https:\/\/the-monitor.org\/reports\/cluster-munition-monitor<\/a><\/div>\n
Cluster Munition Casualties Continue to Rise as Global Norm Comes<\/strong>
\nUnder Pressure<\/strong>
\nNew report documents continued use, production, and enduring contamination<\/em>
\nahead of the Third Review Conference in Vientiane<\/em>
\n(Geneva, 8 September 2026) \u2013 Cluster munitions killed or injured at least 1,063 people
\nin 2025, one of the highest annual totals ever recorded, according to Cluster Munition
\nMonitor 2026, released today by the Cluster Munition Coalition (CMC), ahead of a
\nmilestone international conference reviewing the progress and challenges of the global
\nban on cluster munitions.
\nCivilians continued to bear the overwhelming human cost of these indiscriminate <\/strong>weapons, accounting for 87% of casualties.<\/strong> New casualties from cluster munition attacks (946) or remnants (117) were recorded in nine countries in 2025: Afghanistan, Cambodia, Iraq, Lao PDR, Lebanon, Myanmar, Russia, Syria, and Ukraine. Ukraine recorded at least 927 casualties\u2014the highest country total globally for the fourth consecutive year.
\nThe findings come as states prepare to meet in Vientiane, Lao PDR (from 14\u201318
\nSeptember) for the Third Review Conference on the 2008 Convention on Cluster
\nMunitions, 16 years after the convention entered into force. Lao PDR hosted the
\nconvention’s First Meeting of States Parties in 2010 and is the most cluster munitionaffected country in the world.
\nWhile the 2008 convention banning these weapons continues to deliver tangible
\nhumanitarian results, the norm it created is under mounting pressure from ongoing use
\nand production, the first-ever withdrawal of a State Party, and deep cuts to funding for
\nclearance and survivor support.
\nThe Convention on Cluster Munitions now has 112 States Parties and 12 signatories,
\nfollowing Vanuatu’s accession to the convention in September 2025 and Lithuania\u2019s
\nwithdrawal, which took effect in March 2025; Lithuania became the first country ever to withdraw from the convention. There has been no confirmed use, production, or transfer of cluster munitions by a State Party since joining the convention. In another major achievement, 42 States Parties have destroyed all of their declared stockpiles,
\ncollectively eliminating 1.49 million cluster munitions and 179 million submunitions.
\nEfforts to protect civilian lives and return safe land to productive use have accelerated.
\nIn 2025, the amount of land released increased by 15% compared with 2024, while risk
\neducation continued to help keep communities safe across most affected States Parties.
\n\u201cThis year’s findings show a convention that keeps delivering results to affected
\ncommunities,\u201d said Tamar Gabelnick, Director of the Cluster Munition
\nCoalition. \u201cYet the rising human toll, continued and new use, production, and
\ntransfers by states not party are stark warnings that these gains cannot be taken
\nfor granted. And as humanitarian needs grow, funding cuts are stripping away the
\ncare survivors depend on.\u201d
\nAt the same time, the reporting period saw troubling developments, primarily involving
\nstates outside the convention, that risk undermining the broader norm against cluster
\nmunitions.
\nDuring the reporting period, cluster munitions were used by Iran, Myanmar, Russia,
\nThailand, and Ukraine, all states not party to the convention. Iran used cluster munitions repeatedly in Israel in 2026, Thailand used them against Cambodia in 2025 amid the two countries\u2019 border conflict, while both Russia and Ukraine continued to use cluster munitions in the context of the Russia-Ukraine war. Use was also reported on the territory of State Party Mali that requires further investigation to determine which of the conflicts\u2019 combatants were responsible. Allegations of use by other states not party\u2014including Israel, Pakistan, and possibly the US\u2014as well as by Houthi forces operating in Yemen were also reported but remained unconfirmed.
\nCluster Munition Monitor 2026 identifies 18 countries that still produce cluster munitions or reserve the right to do so, none of them party to the convention. The Monitor found evidence of new production during the reporting period in China, India, Israel, Myanmar, North Korea, Poland, Romania, Russia, and South Korea. Notably, Israel resumed production under a three-year contract with the United States (US) Department of Defense, having announced in 2020 that its last known manufacturer had ceased producing cluster munitions. North Korea tested ballistic missiles carrying cluster munition warheads twice in April 2026. Furthermore, the Monitor found evidence of the US intention to start producing these weapons again in the future.
\nNew transfers also came to light. Evidence emerged that North Korea transferred cluster munitions to Russia, as North Korean-produced cluster munitions were used by Russia in Ukraine in 2025; and in September 2025, Israel was contracted to produce and transfer cluster munitions to the US.
\n\u201cIn Lao PDR, more than 50 years after the bombing stopped, impoverished farmers
\nand children are still being killed and maimed by these indiscriminate weapons,”
\nsaid Phongsavath Manitong, a cluster munition survivor from Lao PDR who
\nnow heads an association of persons with disabilities. “I know because I was one
\nof those children. I lost my arm and eyesight to a cluster munition when I was 16,
\nas I was walking home from school. These weapons do not stop harming people
\nwhen the fighting stops. They take our land, our work, and sometimes our children,
\nfor generations.”
\nA total of 29 countries and other areas are known to be contaminated by cluster munition remnants, including 11 States Parties to the convention.
\nThe Monitor warns that insufficient and declining resources risk undermining progress in both clearance and assistance to victims. Despite efforts by affected states,
\nhumanitarian organizations, and service providers, improvements in the development of dedicated policy frameworks did not translate into victims\u2019 improved access to services. Conflict, displacement, damaged health systems, and reductions in donor funding further weakened assistance in affected countries. In Lao PDR, the main multi-year victim assistance support project was forced to shut down as a result of cuts in USAID funding.
\nIn 2025, approximately US$116 million in international and national funding was provided to address cluster munition contamination. However, the US foreign assistance freeze in February 2025 disrupted clearance in several regions, including Southeast Asia, while subsequent grant terminations reduced mine action capacity in Afghanistan, Iraq, and South Sudan. Other major donors have also reduced allocations and narrowed theirgeographic focus.
\nThe choice of Lao PDR as the location of the Third Review Conference in September
\nbrings this devastating legacy into particularly sharp focus. Lao PDR is still heavily
\naffected by cluster munition remnant contamination despite accounting for the majority of cluster munition-contaminated land released by States Parties in 2025. Returning to Lao PDR 16 years after states first gathered there as parties to the new convention provides an opportunity to demonstrate that the international community remainscommitted to ending the suffering caused by cluster munitions.
\n\u201cThe choice facing governments in Vientiane is not simply whether to reaffirm
\ncommitments made 16 years ago, but whether to dedicate the political leadership
\nand resources needed to deliver on them,\u201d said Gabelnick. \u201cFor communities
\nliving with cluster munition contamination and for survivors requiring lifelong
\nsupport, progress on paper must translate into meaningful change in their daily
\nlives.\u201d
\nCluster Munition Monitor 2026’s findings provide a measure of both what the convention
\nhas achieved and where greater action is needed: preserving the prohibition of use;
\nstrengthening the global norm against cluster munitions; expanding adherence to the
\nconvention; clearing contaminated land; meeting the needs and rights of victims; and
\nensuring sufficient and sustainable international cooperation and assistance, including
\nfinancial support.<\/p>\n

For more information, contact:
\n\u2022 Charles Bechara, ICBL-CMC Communications and Media Manager (English, French,
\nArabic), Tel. +41 (0) 78 323 5144, media@icblcmc.org
\n\u2022 \u00c9l\u00e9a Boureux, Monitor Project Manager (English, French), Tel. +41 (0) 78 225 6011,
\nmonitor@icblcmc.org<\/p><\/div>\n

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<\/div>\n
Press release, available in\u00a0Arabic<\/a>,\u00a0English<\/a>,\u00a0French<\/a>,\u00a0Spanish<\/a>.<\/div>\n
Major Findings are also available in\u00a0Arabic<\/a>,\u00a0English<\/a>,\u00a0French<\/a>,\u00a0German<\/a>,\u00a0Spanish<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Maps can be found at:\u00a0https:\/\/the-monitor.org\/reports\/cluster-munition-monitor-2026\/maps<\/a><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Cluster Munition Monitor 2025<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n

Launched September 2025, this is the 16th annual Cluster Munition Monitor report. It focuses on calendar year 2024, with information included up to August 2025 where possible.<\/p>\n

Cluster Munition Monitor 2025\u00a0<\/i>covers cluster munition ban policy, use, production, transfers, and stockpiling globally, and also contains information on the impact of cluster munition contamination and casualties, as well as developments and challenges in addressing such impact through clearance, risk education and victim assistance.<\/p>\n

Chapters on developments in specific countries and other areas are available in online Country Profiles, found\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"CMM2025<\/p>\n

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Civilian Landmine Casualties Escalate, While Five Countries Take Dangerous Step Away from Humanitarian Mine Ban<\/a><\/p>\n

New report findings lead Nobel Peace Laureate to call for the defense of the 25-year-old ban<\/p>\n

(Geneva, 1 December 2025) \u2013 The\u00a0Landmine Monitor 2025<\/a><\/em>\u00a0report, released today by the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL<\/a>), reveals a stark reality: civilians are bearing the consequences, as efforts to clear mined areas face waning global donor support for essential humanitarian activities. Unprecedented challenges to the long-standing international ban on landmines have also emerged. However, the report also documents the treaty\u2019s continued growth and underscores that its framework remains the world\u2019s most effective tool to end the suffering caused by landmines.<\/p>\n

Landmine Monitor 2025 reports a sharp rise in casualties, with 6,279 people killed or injured by landmines and explosive remnants of war in 2024, the highest annual total since 2020. The increase was largely due to mines in conflict-affected countries, particularly those outside the treaty ban\u2014especially Myanmar, where massive use continues, and Syria, where civilians are increasingly at risk as they return home, either to or through contaminated lands, following the end of the Assad regime. Civilians made up 90% of global casualties in 2024, almost half of them children. Myanmar again recorded the highest number of casualties worldwide for the second consecutive year.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis year\u2019s findings make clear both the scale of new challenges and the need to stay united in upholding commitments and maintaining vital compliance efforts<\/em>.\u201d said Mark Hiznay, Landmine Monitor editor for ban policy. \u201cFive states renounced their treaty obligations in a matter of months, when evidence shows if they use mines, it can take decades and enormous resources to clear contaminated land and assist the new victims, who will feel the impact of mine use long after the conflict has ceased<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 163-page report paints a complex picture. More than half of the affected States Parties succeeded in decreasing their known mine contamination in 2024. A total of 31 States Parties have completed clearance of all antipersonnel mines from their territory since the treaty entered into force on 1 March 1999, with Oman declaring completion in 2025. While the aspirational goal of a mine-free world by 2025 set by States Parties to the Mine Ban Treaty at the Third Review Conference in Maputo in June 2014 has not been met, the treaty itself is stronger than ever in numbers. The recent accession of the Marshall Islands and Tonga brings the number of States Parties to 166, meaning 85% of the world\u2019s countries are bound by the ban.<\/p>\n

At the same time progress towards a mine-free world is being tested in several significant ways. The report notes that the total area cleared declined compared with previous years, reflecting reduced donor funding and growing insecurity in affected regions. Even countries with small amounts of remaining contamination are struggling to complete their clearance obligations due to a lack of financial support. The report also highlights that donor contributions for victim assistance, representing just 5% of all mine action funding, fell by almost a quarter in 2024. Many mine survivors still lack access to essential medical care, rehabilitation, and psychosocial support, despite ongoing attempts by states and the international community to build sustainable services for the victims.<\/p>\n

These challenges were further compounded in early 2025, when the largest donor to mine action, the United States, implemented a freeze on foreign assistance in the first quarter of the year. This was followed by the termination of several humanitarian mine action programs and ongoing uncertainty surrounding the future of others, deepening the funding crisis in many affected countries.<\/p>\n

\u201cBehind each statistic is a family and a community still living with the consequences of landmines<\/em>,\u201d said Ruth Bottomley, Landmine Monitor editor for mine action funding. \u201cThe decline in funding for victim assistance is alarming and must be urgently reversed<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

The report documents continued and possible new use and production of antipersonnel mines. States not party Russia and Myanmar remain responsible for widespread use of antipersonnel mines. There are also indications of new use by States Party Ukraine and allegations of use by Cambodian armed forces. States not party India, Myanmar, Russia, and South Korea appear to be maintaining active production capacity. Additionally, the United States transferred antipersonnel mines to Ukraine in 2024, breaking its own 32-year moratorium on exports and undermining the global stigma against these weapons.<\/p>\n

Despite the growing number of countries demonstrating their commitment to the humanitarian objectives of the Mine Ban Treaty, with the addition of two new States Parties in 2025, the norms of the Mine Ban Treaty are under direct threat as Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland are in the process of withdrawing under the treaty\u2019s Article 20. Ukraine has attempted to \u201csuspend the operation\u201d of the Mine Ban Treaty while engaged in an international armed conflict, an action which is not permitted under the treaty. These developments, together with continued use and production, mark a dangerous erosion of the global norm that has saved countless lives since 1999.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Mine Ban Treaty remains a powerful instrument, and its obligations and principles must be actively defended<\/em>,\u201d said Tamar Gabelnick, Director of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines. \u201cGovernments must speak out to uphold the treaty, prevent further departures, reinforce its provisions globally, and ensure no more countries use, produce, or acquire antipersonnel mines. Turning back is not an option; we have come too far, and the human cost is simply too high<\/em>.\u201d She added.<\/p>\n

The\u00a0Mine Ban Treaty<\/a>\u00a0entered into force on 1 March 1999. It prohibits the use, stockpiling, production, and transfer of antipersonnel landmines and requires States Parties to provide victim assistance, to clear mined areas, and to destroy stockpiles. As of 1 December 2025, 166 countries are bound by the treaty, following the ratification by the Marshall Islands in March 2025 and Tonga\u2019s accession in June 2025. Thirty-one states have yet to join.<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s Landmine Monitor report is being released on the first day of the\u00a0Twenty-Second Meeting of States Parties<\/a> to the Mine Ban Treaty, which opens in Geneva on 1 December 2025.<\/p>\n

Maps can be found at:\u00a0https:\/\/www.the-monitor.org\/reports\/landmine-monitor-2025\/maps<\/a><\/p>\n

Major Findings in\u00a0Arabic<\/a>,\u00a0English<\/a>,\u00a0French<\/a>,\u00a0Russian<\/a>,\u00a0Spanish<\/a>\u00a0are also available.<\/p>\n

\"1CLUSTER MUNITION MONITOR 2024<\/h1>\n
\n

Launched Monday, 9 September, this is the 15th annual Cluster Munition Monitor report. It focuses on calendar year 2023, with information included up to August 2024 where possible.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.the-monitor.org\/reports\/cluster-munition-monitor-2024<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

LANDMINE MONITOR 2023<\/h1>\n
\n

Launched Tuesday, 14 November, this is the 25th annual Landmine Monitor report. It focuses on calendar year 2022, with information included up to October 2023 where possible.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.the-monitor.org\/reports\/landmine-monitor-2023<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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