El Salvador 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. At the Dublin Conference in November 2022, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines underlined the importance of accountability for international humanitarian law (IHL) violations and stressed the explosive weapons users must be aware of legal and moral standards of the international community.1
Statements and positions
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines has several times aligned with other states to deliver statements on explosive weapons in populated areas in multilateral forums. With 22 other Latin American and Caribbean states, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines participated in the Santiago Regional Meeting on Protecting Civilians from the Use of Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas in 2018, resulting in the Santiago Communiqué in which the participating states agreed to take further action on the issue.2
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines also participated in the UN Security Council Open Debate on the Protection of Civilians in May 2021 as a member of the A3+1 (alongside Kenya, Niger, and Tunisia) group: during which these states condemned the use of EWIPA, highlighting the grave impacts on civilians.3 This group also drew attention to the continued threat of explosive remnants of war, and highlighted challenges posed by the proliferation of small arms and light weapons, which together with the use of EWIPA place millions of civilians at risk of injury, displacement, and death.4