Albania was not directly involved in the process to develop a Political Declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. It was, however, among the first group of states to endorse the Political Declaration in Dublin in November 2022. There, Albania reaffirmed states’ obligations under applicable International Law, and expressed its commitment to strengthening the protection of civilians and civilian objects during and after armed conflict, as well as to addressing the humanitarian consequences arising from the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. During the fourth round of consultations in April 2022, Albania also endorsed the European Union (EU) statement expressing support for the initiative.
Statements and positions
Albania has spoken on explosive weapons in populated areas several times at the UN Security Council, primarily highlighting the broad harms caused to civilians by the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. At the UN Security Council open debate on War in Cities on 25 January 2022, Albania warned that when cities become theatres of war, streets become deathbeds and that the use of explosive weapons in populated areas always leads to mass civilian casualties, destruction of critical infrastructure, and displacement. Notably, it also called on all parties to conflict to stop or avoid the use of explosive weapons in populated areas.1 Later that year, at the UN Security Council open debate on the Protection of Civilians, Albania reiterated that “every conflict brings a devastating impact on civilians, critical civilian infrastructure, livelihoods, education, health systems, and food and water security, particularly when explosive weapons are used in populated areas.”2
Alongside its individual statements, Albania has aligned with several statements delivered by the European Union (EU) on the issue of explosive weapons in populated areas beyond the negotiations to develop a Political Declaration. Albania aligned with the EU’s statement to the UN General Assembly First Committee in 2023 in which the EU welcomed the Political Declaration, highlighted the importance of its adoption, and emphasised the importance of implementing the declaration’s commitments (including at the 2024 Oslo Conference)3. Albania also aligned itself with the EU’s statement at the UN Security Council open debate on the Protection of Civilians in 2024, which expressed deep concern for ‘the use and humanitarian consequences of explosive weapons in populated areas, which has significant civilian impact and should thus be restricted or avoided’.4
As a member of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Albania is also aligned with the May 2016 World Humanitarian Summit Core Commitments to ‘Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity’, including the commitment “to promote and enhance the protection of civilians and civilian objects, especially in the conduct of hostilities, for instance by working to prevent civilian harm resulting from the use of wide-area explosive weapons in populated areas, and by sparing civilian infrastructure from military use in the conduct of military operations.”5