Ok, let me understand the situation.
The United States military no longer uses persistant antipersonnel mines so any AP mines the US military emplaces will render themselves inert in short order (might still have non-persistant mines in inventory, don't know). The only persistant mines the US military uses are antivehicle mines, which are only a small threat to people and are at the very least much more easily detected.
Ok, so there are 80 countries that are affected in some way by landmines. According to the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL), the worst countries are Afghanistan (not US fault), Angola (not US fault), Burundi (not US fault), Bosnia & Herzegovina (not US fault - in fact, we've helped clean up many mines in that area over the last 10 years), Cambodia (not US fault), Chechnya (not US fault), Colombia (not US fault), Iraq (not US fault), Nepal (not US fault) and Sri Lanka (not US fault). Other problem countries are Myanmar (Burma) (not US fault), India (not US fault) or Pakistan (not US fault).
Hmm, don't even see Vietnam on the top countries, and they ran us out anyway. How is the US lack of signing contributing to the global problem exactly?
Oh, wait, allow me to quote the ICBL on the subject of the United States of America (I've highlighted several areas):
The Bush Administration announced the results of a two-and-one-half year policy review on 27 February 2004, abandoning the objective of joining the Mine Ban Treaty eventually and declaring its intent to retain antipersonnel mines indefinitely. The US apparently did not use antipersonnel mines in Yugoslavia (Kosovo) in 1999, or in Afghanistan since October 2001, or in Iraq since March 2003. It reserved the right to use antipersonnel mines during each of these conflicts, and deployed mines to the region at least in the cases of Kosovo and Iraq. Landmine Monitor has identified 74 mine casualties among US military personnel between 2001 and 2003.
US mine action funding totaled $421.4 million between fiscal years 1999 and 2003, the largest total for any government. In addition, the State Department reports that in the last five years several hundred thousand US citizens have contributed more than $14 million to mine action programs around the world. The Department of Defense spent over $250 million from 1999-2003 to identify and field alternatives for landmines. The RADAM program, which would have combined existing antipersonnel and antivehicle mines into a new ?mixed system,? was cancelled in 2002. The Pentagon reported in May 2002 that it ?will not be able to meet? the 2006 target date to develop and field alternatives to antipersonnel mines.
Congress has extended the 1992 legislative moratorium on export of antipersonnel mines several times, most recently until 23 October 2008. US antipersonnel mines stockpiled in Italy, Norway, and Spain were removed to comply with their Mine Ban Treaty obligations. The US cleared its protective minefields at the Guantanamo Bay naval base in Cuba in 1999, and now claims not to maintain minefields anywhere in the world. However, protective minefields from the Soviet era are incorporated into the perimeter defense at locations US forces occupy in Afghanistan. The US ratified CCW Amended Protocol II in May 1999.
Who needs to read, Czar?
Facebook
Twitter