04 July 2012

Hungary ratifies Cluster Bomb Ban and becomes 73rd State Party to the Treaty

Hungary signs the Convention at the CCM signing conference in Oslo, Norway 2008. Photo credit: Gunnar Mjaugedal/catchlight.noHungary ratified the Convention on Cluster Munitions on 03 July 2012 becoming the 73rd State Party to the Treaty. The ratification comes in advance of the Third Meeting of States Parties (3MSP) to the Convention on Cluster Munitions which will take place in Oslo, Norway, from 11 to 14 September.CMC campaign member Judith Majlath said "It is welcome news that Hungary is at last now fully on board the Convention on Cluster Munitions. We now call on Cyprus which is the only other EU signatory to the Convention yet to have ratified to do so quickly. We also call on the small number of EU countries yet to join to renounce these horrific weapons by acceding to the treaty."Hungary has stated that it has never used or produced cluster munitions. In November 2007, Hungary enacted a national moratorium on the use of cluster munitions by its armed forces and in 2010 it further stated that the use moratorium would remain in place until it has ratified the convention and become a State Party. Hungary is a former stockpiler of cluster munitions, but announced the completion of the destruction of its stockpile of cluster munitions and declared itself a "cluster munition free country" at the Convention on Cluster Munitions Intersessional Meetings in June 2011. Displaying strong commitment to the spirit of the Convention, Hungary has not retained cluster munitions for training or research purposes.Hungary is one of 21 European Union (EU) member states who have joined the Convention. Just seven EU countries are left to join (Estonia, Slovakia, Finland, Greece, Latvia, Poland and Romania), and Cyprus has signed but not yet ratified the ban.Hungary will formally become a State Party on 1 January 2013, after the waiting period mandated by the Convention.UN Journal announcing Hungary's ratification.