Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 14 July 2015
106. Deputy Mick Wallace asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his views on the recent reports of Saudi Arabia using United States of America-supplied cluster munitions in its air strikes in Yemen, particularly in view of Ireland's profile on the banning of such weapons; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28400/15]
View answerI have taken careful note of recent reports of use of cluster munitions, including their alleged use in Yemen. These well documented reports by Human Rights Watch of alleged use of cluster munitions by the Saudi led coalition in Yemen are a cause of deep concern to me. This concern has been expressed by Ireland at the recent Intersessional Meetings to the Convention on Cluster Munitions held in Geneva in June. Ireland regularly urges all countries who have not signed or ratified the Cluster Munitions Convention, including the States which form the Saudi led coalition in Yemen, to sign and ratify the Convention and to cease use of these indiscriminate weapons.
Ireland continues to support and encourage universalisation of the Convention on Cluster Munitions in all multilateral fora and is deeply concerned about reports of any use of cluster munitions.
The Convention prohibits all use, transfer, and stockpiling of cluster munitions, and I call upon all states, including those States who have not signed the Convention, as well as non-state actors to refrain from using these weapons.
The Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM) was adopted at a Diplomatic Conference in Dublin in 2008. Ireland has been a major supporter of the movement to ban cluster munitions from the very outset of this initiative. The Convention entered into force on 1 August 2010 and as of 8 July 2015 a total of 116 states have joined the Convention (92 States parties and 24 Signatories).
My Department is now preparing for the First Review Conference to the Convention which will take place in Croatia in September 2015, which presents an important opportunity to further strengthen and solidify the growing international norm against the use and retention of these inhumane weapons.
