Overview

LEGAL BACKGROUND
Pursuant to Article 12, paragraph 1, of the Mine Ban Convention a “Review Conference shall be convened by the Secretary-General of the United Nations five years after the entry into force of this Convention. Further Review Conferences shall be convened by the Secretary-General of the United Nations if so requested by one or more States Parties, provided that the interval between Review Conferences shall in no case be less than five years. All States Parties to this Convention shall be invited to each Review Conference”.

The First Review Conference of the States Parties to the Convention (29 November to 3 December 2004, Nairobi, Kenya) decided that the Second Review Conference will take place in the second half of the year 2009. Against this background, the Ninth Meeting of the States Parties to the Convention (24 to 28 November 2008, Geneva, Switzerland) decided that the Second Review Conference will take place in Cartagena, Colombia, the week of 30 November to 4 December 2009. The Meeting further decided to hold preparatory meetings in advance of the Second Review Conference in Geneva on 29 May 2009 and on 3 to 4 September 2009.