Australia was actively involved in the process to develop a Political Declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas, and was among the first group of states to endorse the Political Declaration in Dublin in November 2022. Australia regularly delivered statements throughout the consultations towards a Political Declaration, as well as raising concerns around explosive weapons in populated areas and expressing support for a Political Declaration in other multilateral forums. In the first consultations on the declaration in November 201, Australia submitted a written statement on the scope and content of a Political Declaration, noting that it should, inter alia: distinguish between lawful use of explosive weapons use in breach of international humanitarian law; reinforce the importance of universal respect for existing principles of international humanitarian law and recall that international humanitarian law applies to non-state actors who are parties to armed conflict; underline the importance of attention to military policies and practices as well as the testing of new weapons and means and methods of warfare before use in armed conflict; recognise that, in certain circumstances, a failure to apply force can itself have serious humanitarian consequences such as prolongation of conflict; and encourage the sharing of good practices and operational policies relevant to reducing the risk of civilian harm in armed conflict in populated areas.”1
As the consultation process progressed, Australia delivered several additional statements in response to the evolving draft of the Political Declaration. Several of these interventions were aimed at emphasising that the harms caused to civilians by explosive weapons use in populated areas are a possibility instead of an inherent effect of such use. For example, Australia agreed with the UK that instead of saying that explosive weapons in populated areas use “is having” devastating impacts, the declaration should say that it “can have” these impacts or that these impacts “can arise” from explosive weapons in populated areas use.2 In the March 2021 consultations, Australia supported the proposed addition of qualifiers in the text to indicate that harm “can” potentially arise from the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. It also argued that the Political Declaration should focus on promoting existing IHL, as strengthening compliance with IHL would be useful to effectively regulate the use of explosive weapons in populated areas without needing to create new obligations.3 During the fourth consultations in April 2022, Australia recommended the addition of “impartial” in relating to humanitarian relief in paragraph and also expressed reservations about the term “reverberating effects”.4
At the United Nations General Assembly First Committee in 2022, Australia welcomed the conclusion of the negotiations on the Political Declaration, referring to the finalized text as a “bright spot” in 2022.5 At the signing ceremony in Dublin in November 2022, Australia noted that “while the use of explosive weapons in populated areas is not prohibited by IHL, the right of parties in an armed conflict to choose methods or means of warfare is not unlimited”.6
Statements and positions
Australia has frequently spoken on explosive weapons in populated areas in multilateral forums, primarily to condemn the harms caused to civilians when explosive weapons are used without regard for international humanitarian law and call for action to better protect civilians from harm. At the 2022 Meeting of the CCW High Contracting Parties in November, Australia expressed hope that the Political Declaration on explosive weapons in populated areas will contribute to improving IHL compliance and enhance the protection of civilians. 7 At several UN Security Council open debates on the protection of civilians in armed conflict Australia included in its statement a condemnation of the use of “powerful”8 explosive weapons in populated areas without regard for international humanitarian law restrictions as a clear violation of the limits of conflict.
Alongside its individual statements, Australia has repeatedly aligned with other states to deliver statements on explosive weapons in populated areas. At the January 2022 UN Security Council open debate on War in Cities, the Group of Friends of the Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict (of which Australia is a member) called on states to enhance the protection of civilians, including from the use of explosive weapons in populated areas, and took note of the ongoing consultations to develop a Political Declaration on this subject.9 The Group made similar remarks at the 2022 UN Security Council open debate on the protection of civilians10, and noted the adoption of the Political Declaration at the 2023 open debate.11