This week (14-18 September), the mine action community is gathering in Vientiane, Laos, for the Third Review Conference of the Convention on Cluster Munitions.
Adopted in 2008, the Convention is a landmark international agreement that prohibits the use, production, transfer and stockpiling of cluster munitions, and commits states to addressing their devastating impact on communities.
The Conference brings together states, international organisations, civil society and campaigners to take stock of progress, address ongoing challenges and strengthen efforts to end the suffering caused by these weapons.
Discussions will focus on priorities including the continued use of cluster munitions, clearance of contaminated land, assistance for survivors and affected communities, risk education, and the need for sustainable funding for mine action.
Cluster munitions can cause harm long after conflicts end. Bomblets that fail to explode on impact can remain scattered across land, posing a deadly threat to civilians and preventing communities from safely farming, travelling and rebuilding their lives.
MAG was responsible for 22% of all cluster munition-contaminated land cleared globally in 2025. But, with cluster munitions still being used and new contamination emerging in recent years, the need for action is urgent.
At the Third Review Conference, MAG is calling on states to reaffirm their commitment to the Convention, strengthen efforts to prevent further use, and ensure the resources needed to clear cluster munition remnants and protect communities.
The Conference is a critical opportunity to renew the global commitment to ending the use of cluster munitions for good, and to making sure the legacy they leave behind does not continue to threaten future generations.
Learn more about cluster munitions and the threat they pose to families here – and see updates from this week’s conference below.
Monday 14 September
Hear from MAG’s Director of Programmes, Greg Crowther, on the first day of the Conference.
This week, we're calling for three things:
- Universalising the ban on cluster munitions
- Renewed commitment to tackling contamination
- Urgent funding for survey and clearance
(Some footage courtesy of Vietnam Television (VTV).
It was a pleasure to welcome His Excellency Saleumxay Kommasith, Deputy Prime Minister of Laos, to the MAG exhibition stand.
Credit: MOFA/NRA
MAG co-hosted a side event with Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA) on lessons learned on Cluster Munition Remnants Survey (CMRS) in Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam.
Eli Mechanic, our Country Director in Laos, shared the lessons learned by MAG in surveying contaminated land, from understanding the scale and location of contamination to ensuring prioritisation for communities that need it most.
Drawing on experience across the three countries, the discussion highlighted how collaboration, partnership with local government, community trust and effective coordination help ensure efficient and responsive survey and allocation of resources.
These lessons are vital as countries work to meet their commitments under the Convention on Cluster Munitions and ensure land can be safely returned to communities as soon as possible.
Credit: MOFA/NRA
Eli Mechanic published an opinion piece in the Laotian Times on the lingering effects of cluster munitions on communities.
In it, he argues that "a treaty can only provide meaningful protection if countries continue to join it and uphold its principles. The experience of Laos should make the case for universalisation impossible to ignore.
"Currently, 112 countries are States Parties to the Treaty. However, around the world, 17 countries still produce cluster munitions or retain the right to do so, and their well-documented use in recent conflicts shows that the international norm against these weapons is under pressure.
"The Third Review Conference should send a clear message that the ban must be universal and that the use of cluster munitions must end completely, while affected countries such as Laos need sustained international cooperation and assistance for survey, clearance, risk education and support to affected communities. We must reinforce the stigma against any use and emphasise their unacceptable humanitarian impacts."
Read the full op-ed here
Tuesday 15 September
Sebastian Kasack, MAG’s Head of Programmes Performance and Learning, delivered a statement calling on the Review Conference to:
- defend the norm by condemning every use of cluster munitions and resisting any erosion of the Convention
- extend the norm by understanding and addressing the barriers to accession
- deliver the norm by matching political promises with practical implementation and sustained resources
Credit: MOFA/NRA
Timor-Leste today announced its accession to the Convention on Cluster Munitions.
This is an important step towards universalising the Convention, and comes at a critical time, as cluster munition casualties are rising and these weapons continue to cause devastating harm to civilians.
It also highlights the important role of regional cooperation, as the announcement takes place during this week’s Conference.
Timor-Leste’s decision sends a strong message that the global commitment to ending the use of cluster munitions must continue to grow.
MAG was pleased to co-host an opening reception for our exhibition, Land and Memory: Living with UXO in Lao PDR, with the British Embassy at our UXO Visitor Centre in Vientiane.
The exhibition is a collaborative project featuring the work of five Lao artists, exploring the enduring legacy of war and its impact on communities across Laos.
At the event, David Riley, UK Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the Conference on Disarmament, reinforced the UK’s support for MAG’s work and cluster munition clearance in Laos, which follows the UK’s announcement earlier this year to continue funding clearance in the country.
Ambassador Riley said: “The story of mine action in Laos is one of resilience, one of determination and one of hope… our partnership shows the progress that is possible when governments, local communities and international partners come together behind a shared outcome.”
Ms. Moukdavanh Sisoulith, Laos’s Director General of the Department of International Organisations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, also highlighted the importance of MAG’s work in both Xieng Khouang and Khammouane Provinces , as communities continue to live with the threat of unexploded ordnance over 50 years after the conflict ended.
“For generations, affected communities have continued to build their lives, cultivate their land, raise their families and look towards the future despite the risks around them. Their experience is a powerful testament to the resilience of the Lao people, to the dedication of those working everyday in the UXO sector and to the importance of sustained international cooperation. This is what makes Land and Memory so meaningful, because the land always remembers.”
Eli Mechanic, MAG’s Country Director in Laos, added: “As Laos hosts the Convention on Cluster Munitions Review Conference, this exhibition reminds us that the impact of conflict is not confined to the past. Through the work of five Lao artists, Land and Memory brings attention to the lasting consequences of unexploded ordnance while celebrating the resilience and strength of affected communities.”
Land and Memory was co-developed by MAG and the XYZ Art Center, and made possible through the support of the European Union, the Governments of Norway and the United Kingdom, and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation.
Credit: Soulinthone Latthavanh
Watch a short video about the artists’ inspiration behind their work here:
Wednesday 16 September
Clément Meynier, MAG’s Head of Policy, today delivered a statement on cluster munition clearance, highlighting what trained national capacities, reliable information and strong evidence, trust built with communities, and strong authorities and national partners can achieve.
These are all built over years, but can be lost quickly when support stops – clearance and coordination capacities cannot simply be switched off and then restarted.
He stated: “MAG welcomes the Action Plan’s focus on sustainable national capacity. Completion is not simply the clearance of the last known task. It means leaving behind the skills, systems and responsive capacity to manage what may be discovered next.”
Thursday 17 September
This week, MAG is highlighting 10 years of coordinated mine action in Quang Tri, Vietnam.
Our new publication looks at how collaboration between MAG, government authorities, local partners and others has helped make mine action more efficient and effective across the province.
During the conference, MAG’s Country Director in Vietnam, Sarah Goring, and our Director of Programmes Greg Crowther, met with Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Thi Hoang Van to discuss Vietnam’s mine action efforts and the country’s new strategy to address the impact of landmines and unexploded ordnance by 2045.
The Deputy Foreign Minister expressed her appreciation for MAG’s work in Vietnam since 1999 and reaffirmed Vietnam’s support for the humanitarian objectives of the Convention on Cluster Munitions and efforts to prevent the indiscriminate use of these weapons.
MAG is pleased to continue working with the Vietnamese authorities as they take the next steps towards this ambition.
Read the full publication here
With thanks to the Government of New Zealand and the Government of Canada for supporting the publication of this report.
Credit: MOFA/NRA & Vietnam News Agency
Friday 18 September
MAG participated in a side event alongside HAMAP, Beeatoona and the Government of Norway, hosted by the Lebanese Mine Action Centre, to discuss the importance of national ownership of mine action during renewed conflict.
Greg Crowther, MAG’s Director of Programmes, shared lessons from MAG’s work in Lebanon and around the world on what it takes to support sustainable implementation of the Convention, including the importance of strong national leadership, coordination and long-term investment in mine action.
The discussion highlighted how national ownership can help ensure mine action remains effective and responsive, even when conflict disrupts progress.
Credit: MOFA/NRA
As the Third Review Conference of the Convention on Cluster Munitions comes to a close in Vientiane, Josephine Dresner, MAG’s Director of Policy and Strategic Partnerships, reflects on this week’s key moments.
With rising casualties and communities still living with the threat of cluster munition contamination, we continue to urge for stronger international commitment to the Convention, including more countries joining the ban, renewed efforts to clear contaminated land, and the funding to make that work possible.
We look forward to working with Austria as the next Presidency.
Credit: MOFA/NRA
