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Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons
Home    >   Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons   >  Statement delivered by Ambassador (Dr.) Pankaj Sharma, Permanent Representative of India to the Conference on Disarmament during the Annual meeting of the High Contracting Parties to the CCW in Geneva on November 13, 2019.

Statement delivered by Ambassador (Dr.) Pankaj Sharma, Permanent Representative of India to the Conference on Disarmament during the Annual meeting of the High Contracting Parties to the CCW in Geneva on November 13, 2019.

Mr. Chariman,

The delegation of India congratulates you on assuming the Chair of the 2019 Annual Meeting of the High Contracting Parties to the CCW. We also congratulate the other members of the Bureau upon their election. We assure you of the full support of the Indian delegation.

2.       The CCW is an important instrument that seeks to uphold International Humanitarian Law. The Convention and its Annexed Protocols, while stipulating measures to mitigate humanitarian concerns arising from the use of specific weapons and weapon systems, also take into account the military necessity of such weapons, thus striving to strike a balance between the two imperatives. Over the years, the Convention has evolved dynamically and demonstrated its continued relevance through the successive adoption of its five Protocols.

3.       India is party to the CCW, all its five Protocols as well as its Amended Article 1. We are committed to ensure the full implementation of our obligations under the CCW and its Protocols, including Amended Protocol II and Protocol V, and the humanitarian principles that they embody.

4.       Universalisation of the CCW remains critical for the success of the Convention and its Annexed Protocols. We note with satisfaction the steady progress towards this goal with the number of States parties rising to a noteworthy 125. India supports the Plan of Action on Universalization as well as the Sponsorship Programme, and has made regular financial contributions to it over the last few years.

5.       India has regularly submitted its Annual Report on Compliance since 2008. We support measures aimed at encouraging submission of compliance reports by all States.

Mr. Chairman,

6.       We remain concerned about the precarious financial situation of the CCW and call on all States to make their financial contributions in time. We support the efforts that have been made by you, for ensuring greater predictability and stability in the financial resources of the Convention and hope that we can arrive at a sustainable solution.

7.       As to the issue of LAWS,  the report of the  2019 session of the GGE on LAWS, adopted under the chairmanship of Macedonia, was able to adopt  an additional guiding principle on human-machine interaction.   Owing to the constructive engagement of all States, the GGE was able to have  detailed substantive discussions We remain convinced that the CCW is the relevant forum to address this issue, not least because of the fine balance the Convention seeks to strike between humanitarian concerns and military necessity but also because it provides a dynamic and adaptive platform bringing together multiple stake-holders. Further, we believe that addressing this issue within the framework of the CCW strengthens the Convention and underlines that it is capable of responding meaningfully to evolving new technologies applicable to armed conflict in the 21st century.

Mr. Chairman,

8.         India, therefore, supports continuation of the mandate of the GGE on LAWS, with participation of all relevant stakeholders, with a view to taking forward the fruitful deliberations during past three years, leading to evolution of a  common understanding on various aspects of LAWS and consensus on the way forward. There are a number of proposals on the manner in which we should deal with LAWS. While we see merit in the proposals calling for a legally-binding instrument, we are of the view that it is premature, at this stage of the  deliberations, to prejudge the outcome of the deliberations in future on the  nature of such a legally-binding instrument, by calling for prohibition on  LAWS. It is also not the right time to call for declaration of a moratorium on further developments or use of LAWS. India, without prejudice to a negotiated outcome to be reached by consensus, is, therefore, not in a position to support any position which prejudges the outcome of ongoing deliberations including in the form of a prohibition or moratorium on further developments or use of LAWS. India stands ready to actively participate in the deliberations of the GGE and work with fellow High Contracting Parties to reach a common understanding based on consensus.

Mr. Chairman,

9.       While we regret that the stand alone item on ‘Consideration of how developments in the field of Science and technology relevant to the Convention may be addressed under the Convention’ was not retained on the Agenda last year, we look forward to having a discussion on S&T issues relevant to the CCW context under the agenda item on ‘Emerging Issues in the context of the objectives and purposes of the Convention’. We believe that the accelerating pace of technological change necessitates a thorough assessment of the potential impact of developments in science and technology on international security and disarmament in general, including in the context of the CCW. It was with this objective in mind that India had tabled its resolution on the ‘Role of science and technology in the context of international security and disarmament’, which was adopted by consensus at the 74th session of the First Committee this year. The UNSG’s report on ‘Current developments in Science and Technology and their potential impact on international security and disarmament’, as mandated by this resolution, provides a number of relevant and valuable insights with regard to our work in the CCW and merits the consideration of all High Contracting Parties. We are also pleased to share that India was joined by Germany, Qatar and Switzerland in supporting organization of a one-day seminar in August this year by UNIDIR in response to the UNGA Resolution tabled by India at its 73rd Session.

Mr. Chairman,

10.     In keeping with India’s commitment to disarmament and non-proliferation objectives, we have instituted an Annual Disarmament and International Security Fellowship Programme for young foreign diplomats commencing from January, 2Ol9. This initiative is also a reflection of our commitment to support the goal of “disarmament and education” of the UNSG’s Disarmament Agenda. The Programme has modules dedicated to conventional weapons and shall cover the CCW in a comprehensive manner. We believe that it shall make a valuable contribution in disseminating information about the CCW and the objectives that it seeks to achieve, including its universalization.

Thank You, Mr. Chairman.

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