Lithuania Withdraws from Cluster Munition Convention
CISR
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(ICBL / CMC) The Cluster Munition Coalition (CMC) expressed profound disappointment over Lithuania's decision to withdraw from the Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM), a move formally announced on July 26, 2024. Despite substantial humanitarian, legal, and political repercussions, the withdrawal process will commence six months following the notification to CCM States Parties and other UN bodies. Lithuanian President signed the "Law on Denounce of the Convention on Cluster Munitions" on July 25, subsequent to the Parliament's approval on July 18.
This decision marks Lithuania as the first nation to exit a humanitarian disarmament treaty, eliciting strong condemnation from various international bodies and NGOs, including Human Rights Watch and the International Committee of the Red Cross. CMC Director Tamar Gabelnick emphasized the indiscriminate and long-lasting dangers of cluster munitions, urging Lithuania to reconsider and highlighting the negative precedent this sets for international humanitarian law.
