Publication

In December 2008, the Oslo Process, an initiative of the Norwegian government to ban cluster munitions, was concluded with the signing of the "Convention on Cluster Munitions." The Convention, with its extensive prohibitions, will enter into force six months after 30th Instrument of Ratification has been submitted to the UN Secretary-General. The precondition for ratification of a new protocol on cluster munitions would be consensus among the 109 Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW) signatory states. It remains completely unclear, however, whether the proposed protocol could be designed to complement the Oslo Convention and thus to strengthen the existing weapons prohibition regime, or whether it would create a source of conflict between agreements of differing scope and quality.