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Watch the Foreign Minister's opening statement
Watch the press conference after the Foreign Minister's statement:
In the Norwegian Government’s view, certain types of cluster munitions have such serious humanitarian consequences that their use cannot be justified. Norway has therefore for several years promoted the need to start negotiations for an international ban on cluster munitions that have unacceptable humanitarian consequences. The present Norwegian Government has taken an active stance by including their commitment to work for an international ban on cluster munitions in their Government Platform.
When the States Parties to the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW) failed in November 2006 to agree on a mandate to start real negotiations addressing the humanitarian problems cluster munitions causes, the Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre invited interested states and organizations to a meeting in Oslo. The aim of the meeting is to start a process towards an international instrument on cluster munitions together along with other concerned states and humanitarian actors.
The meeting will be held in Oslo on February 22 and 23, and will be the first step in a process that could lead to an international ban on cluster munitions that causes unacceptable human suffering. Read more about the Norwegian Government’s initiative for a ban on cluster munitions