FACT SHEET: U.S. MILITARY IS COMMITTED TO GLOBAL LANDMINE BAN

 
(DOD has destroyed over one million landmines) 
  

(The following fact sheet on landmines and demining was issued by the  
Department of Defense on July 3.)  
  

The U.S. anti-personnel landmine (APL) policy, announced by the  
President on May 16, 1996, calls for the aggressive pursuit of an  
international ban on the use, stockpiling, transfer, and production of  
APL. On January 17, 1997, the administration stated that the United  
States would pursue a comprehensive, global APL ban through the  
Conference on Disarmament (CD) in Geneva. The President also declared  
a permanent ban on APL export and transfer and established a stockpile  
cap at current inventory levels.  
  

The U.S. APL policy carefully balances the humanitarian concern for  
landmine victims and the obligation to protect the lives of our  
soldiers. The policy addresses one of DOD's key interests by ensuring  
that critical military operational requirements can be met pending  
development of viable alternative capabilities. Specifically, it  
preserves the right of the United States to use APL on the Korean  
Peninsula, until APL alternatives become available or the risk of  
aggression has been removed.  
  

DOD's other key interests are securing in negotiations the early  
participation of those states that are now producing, supplying, or  
employing APL and achieving a global APL ban as soon as possible. DOD  
has been conducting bilateral military-to-military discussions with  
key personnel from other countries to clarify the U.S. military's APL  
requirement, educate them as to what the U.S. military is doing to end  
its reliance on APL, and convince them that the U.S. military  
community is committed to achieving a global ban. DOD personnel have  
also been working closely with the appropriate agencies and the  
international community to pursue a comprehensive, world-wide ban in  
the Conference on Disarmament.  
  

The Department's efforts to implement the U.S. APL policy clearly  
indicates its support of the policy and DOD's commitment to end  
reliance on APL as soon as possible.  
  
-- In addition to an aggressive research and development program to  
provide effective APL alternatives, doctrine and war plans are being  
revised and modified.  
  

-- Except for purposes of training and defense across the Korean  
Demilitarized Zone. Non-self-destructing APL are being removed from  
actual stocks, and approximately 1.1 million have been destroyed to  
date. The removal effort at Guantanamo Naval Base (Cuba) is on  
schedule and all non-self-destructing APL will be removed by the end  
of 1999 as planned.  
  

-- APL detection and removal have been accelerated by identifying the  
most promising research and development technologies and project areas  
for immediate use in humanitarian demining operations. Prototypes have  
already been fielded in Bosnia, Cambodia, and Rwanda.  
  

-- Humanitarian demining operations have been expanded. The number of  
eligible countries has increased from 12 in FY 1996 to 14 in FY 1997,  
with 10 additional countries currently being considered. During the  
same period, the number of DOD personnel deployed for these operations  
has increased by 77 percent; the number of indigenous forces trained  
has increased by 133 percent; and the dollar value of equipment  
transferred has increased by 32 percent.  


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Department of State.)