 |  |
MONDAY 27 MAY & THURSDAY 30 MAY1. Opening of the meetingThe meeting was opened by its Co-Chairs, Dragomir Zakov of Bulgaria and Joe Ballard of New Zealand. In opening the meeting, the Co-Chairs reminded delegations that they are proceeding, in keeping with past practice, in undertaking the task of consulting with a view to identifying a list of nominees to serve as new Co-Chairs to be elected at the Thirteenth Meeting of the States Parties (13MSP). 2. Overview of the general status of implementationThe President of the Twelfth Meeting of the States Parties (12MSP), H.E. Matjaz Kovacic, provided an overview of the general status of implementation of the Convention. Included in the President’s statement was his call to States Parties to “not shy away from our obligation and our political commitment to work together in an expeditious manner to resolve alleged or known cases of non-compliance.” 3. Overview of the status of universalizationThe Coordinator of the Universalization Contact Group, Belgium, delivered a statement on the status of universalization. The following other States Parties and organizations provided updates or shared views on universalization: ICBL, ICRC, the European Union, Norway, Austria, the UN Mine Action Team, Mexico and New Zealand. 4. ComplianceThe Co-Chairs recalled that at the Cartagena Summit, it was agreed that cases of non-compliance with the Convention’s obligations should be addressed in a cooperative manner with all States Parties working together with the States Parties concerned to resolve the matter expeditiously. The Co-Chairs also indicated that they had written to some States Parties to request updates regarding various concerns about compliance. The following delegations provided updates or shared views on matters concerning compliance: Canada, Cambodia, Turkey, Yemen, Thailand, the ICBL, Sudan, the ICRC, Norway, New Zealand, Austria and South Sudan. 5. Article 9: The development and adoption of legislative, administrative and other measuresThe Co-Chairs recalled that at the Second Review Conference, the States Parties recorded that while there had been some progress since the Nairobi Summit in implementing Article 9, over 40 percent of the States Parties had not yet reported that they have legislation in place to give effect to the Convention. The ICRC provided an update on this matter. The following delegations provided updates or shared views on matters concerning Article 9 of the Convention: Bhutan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Afghanistan and the UN Mine Action Team. 6. Transparency and the exchange of informationThe Coordinator of the Article 7 Contact Group, Belgium, delivered a statement on the status of reporting under Article 7 of the Convention. The following other States Parties and organizations provided updates or shared views on transparency reporting: the ICBL, the UN Mine Action Team, Ecuador and the ICRC. 7. Article 3: Updates on plans for and use of mines retained for the development of and training in mine detection, mine clearance, or mine destruction techniquesThe Co-Chairs recalled that the Cartagena Action Plan contains three action points regarding mines retained for purposes permitted under Article 3 of the Convention. The following delegations provided updates or shared views on mines retained for permitted purposes: Germany and Bhutan. |