Disarmament and non-proliferation
Disarmament and non-proliferation
UN Department for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA)
Lithuania is an active, consistent and transparent partner of all the Geneva Disarmament forums. The main forums dealing with arms control, non-proliferation and disarmament issues are: the Conference on Disarmament (CD), the UN Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons which may be considered Excessively Injurious or to Have Indiscriminate Effects (CCW); Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction (Ottawa Convention), the Biological Weapons Convention, the Oslo Convention on Cluster explosives.
Conference on Disarmament (CD)
At the Disarmament conference Lithuania is participating with an observer status. In 2010, an Informal Observer Group was formed (IGOS), which Lithuania is a member of. In 2011, the CD reported that this group saw necessary to examine the potential enlargement of the CD. The activity of the group remains ongoing, and allows discussions regarding further issues. Together with other 26 states, Lithuania has represented its request to become a member-state of the Conference on Disarmament.
Ottawa Convention
Lithuania was the first one from the Baltic countries to join the Ottawa Convention, which entered into force on the 1st of November, 2003. In 2004 Lithuania abolished all the stocks of anti-personnel mines in its territory and now the transit of mines is allowed only for the purpose of destruction,
As Lithuania considers international mine action highly important, it has consistently encouraged the effective implementation of the Ottawa Convention. Between 2006 and 2012, Lithuania has acted as co-rapporteur and co-chair of the Standing Committee on Stockpile Destruction of the Ottawa Convention, and as a vice-president of the Ottawa Convention XII annual meeting of the member countries in 2011. Lithuania attended the Mine Ban Treaty intersessional Standing Committee meetings in May 2012.
Lithuania encourages the development of the new convention in the region and the process for universal application of the Convention objectives. Also, Lithuania seeks to strengthen support for victims of mines, foster anti-personnel mine ban rates in the region and encourages to refuse this inhumane weapon, contributing to the promotion of transparency and confidence-building in the region.
Limitation of weapons convention (CCW)
The contribution of the Lithuanian diplomats to the work on the implementation of the CCW Convention remains relevant. In 2011, Lithuanian representatives actively participated in the CCW Donors surveillance program committee and supported the efforts to adopt the Protocol of Cluster Munition. From April 2012 to June 2014 the representative of Lithuania has been appointed as the coordinator of the committee (also during the period of 2007 – 2008).
At the CCW Review Conference IV held in November 2011, the representatives of Lithuania respectively became vice-President of the Conference and vice-President of the II Main Committee, where the finalization of negotiations on a possible CCW VI of the Additional Protocol took place.