TheGingerMan wrote:Winston Smith wrote:159 nations have signed the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty banning the use of anti-personnel landmines because they're indiscriminate killers of men, women and children long after they've been planted out of sight beneath the earth. 37 nations have refused to sign the ban, Syria among them. Guess who else is in that rogues gallery?
Yep, you guessed it.
Not very decent company, one would have to admit.
I wonder why the Marshall Islands never signed?
Marshall Islands has signed but not yet ratified. Thanks to Wikileaks we know why:
The Republic of the Marshall Islands signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 4 December 1997. The Marshall Islands is one of the last two signatories that have still not ratified the Mine Ban Treaty.
The Marshall Islands re-engaged in the Mine Ban Treaty process in 2008, but did not attend any meetings held in 2009–2010 or the first half of 2011. In November 2008, a representative of the Marshall Islands informed States Parties that the government strongly supported the goals and objectives of the Mine Ban Treaty, but cited its relationship with the United States (US) and the burden of treaty participation on small states as principal reasons for not ratifying.
A US Department of State cable made public by Wikileaks in August 2011 provides “talking points” for US officials to respond to a “request” from the Marshall Islands for clarification on the US position on Mine Ban Treaty ratification by the Marshall Islands.
According to the September 2009 cable from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, US officials met with representatives from the Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, and Palau on 2 December 1997, two days before the Marshall Islands signed the Mine Ban Treaty. In the meeting, the US said that “adherence to the Convention is up to each state based on its assessment of its own national interest,” but emphasized that “the U.S. would not adhere to the Ottawa Convention and that adherence by the other three states could conflict with defense provisions of the respective bilateral Compacts of Free Association.”
In the cable, the US describes “the defense provisions” of the compacts as “unique, especially the U.S. commitment to defending the Republic of the Marshall Islands as if it were part of the United States.” The US cites three sections of its Compact of Free Association with the Marshall Islands that it believes would be contradicted by the Marshall Islands’ ratification and adherence to the Mine Ban Treaty. The cable also states that ratification “would be problematic if the United States needed to store anti-personnel landmines” at sites in the Marshall Islands. Finally, the US warns that ratification “also affects the ability of citizens of RMI to serve in the U.S. armed forces under Compact section 341.”
