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France

HAS ENDORSED THE POLITICAL DECLARATION

France 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. France regularly delivered statements throughout the consultations towards a Political Declaration suggesting that the focus should be on promoting International Humanitarian Law (IHL) as a sufficient existing framework and avoiding creating any new obligations. 1 France also argued that the Declaration should not try to focus on categories of weapons independent of the way in which they are employed, rather it should try to distinguish between what France referred to as legal employments of weapons and those that are indiscriminate. 2 At the consultations in 2020, France suggested that the Political Declaration should treat non-state actors as being on equal footing and should condemn use of human shields and any exploitation of presence of civilians and civilian objects. 3 It also expressed that it is concerned only with the indiscriminate use of explosive weapons, not their indiscriminate effects. 4  

France echoed this position throughout the consultations, arguing that the Declaration should only address “indiscriminate use” of explosive weapons and should explicitly distinguish between the lawful and unlawful use of explosive weapons in populated areas, otherwise it would stigmatise explosive weapons generally. France supported the addition of qualifiers in the text to indicate that harm “can” potentially arise from the use of explosive weapons in populated areas 5 and suggested including the caveat “where feasible and appropriate” in relation to the collection and sharing of data. 6 At the final consultation in June 2022, France said it is convinced that strengthening cooperation, training, and exchange of know-how among states will lead to greater effectiveness of IHL. 7 During the signing ceremony in Dublin in November 2022, France encouraged states to endorse the Political Declaration and to participate actively in the follow-up process. France also highlighted that the implementation of the Declaration will contribute to the evolution of operation procedures and practices of armed forces to minimize civilian harm, taking into account the urban environment and the circumstances of attack. 8 

Statements and positions

France attended the first international implementation conference on the Political Declaration in Oslo, Norway in April 2024, and the second implementation conference in San Jose, Costa Rica in November 2025. 

Speaking at Oslo, France welcomed the conference, describing it as the beginning of a process that aims to promote cooperation and sharing best practices to better protect civilians. It highlighted its support for actions aimed to protect civilians and stated that a lot of training will have to be conducted in this context. France specifically highlighted the priority it puts on the Declaration’s commitments pertaining to the humanitarian impacts of explosive weapons use, and shared that its humanitarian strategy for 2023-2027 has been renewed to take into account new obstacles and priorities. The statement also focused on pre- and post-conflict measures, including reinforcing civil society, demining and facilitating the return of civilian populations to their home country. 9 

France has spoken on explosive weapons in populated areas at several UN Security Council open debates on the protection of civilians in armed conflict: in May 2017, France spoke about its use of explosive weapons in populated areas in contexts like Libya, Mali, and the Levant, insisting that their “very strict rules of engagement make possible the prevention of humanitarian consequences of our operations using explosive weapons in populated areas, in accordance with international humanitarian law.” 10 More recently, in May 2023, France urged states to sign the Political Declaration 11 a call it repeated during the 2023 12 and 2024 13 UN General Assembly First Committee those same years. 

Alongside its individual statements, France has repeatedly aligned with other states to deliver statements on explosive weapons in populated areas. As a member of the European Union (EU), France has signed onto numerous joint statements condemning the use of explosive weapons in populated areas and the harms it causes to civilians and civilian objects, as well as calling for greater IHL compliance and welcoming the Political Declaration. This includes at several UN Security Council open debates on the protection of civilians in armed conflict 14, including in 2024 when it expressed deep concern about the use and humanitarian consequences of explosive weapons in populated areas ‘which has significant civilian impact and should thus be restricted and avoided’15 as well as at the 2022 UN Security Council open debate on war in cities where the EU expressed concern over the indiscriminate use of explosive weapons in populated areas, including near hospitals, schools, and universities 16 and at the UN General Assembly’s First Committee. 17

France also aligned with the World Humanitarian Summit Core Commitments to ‘Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity’ as an EU member state in May 2016. This included 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.” 18 

As a member of the Group of Friends on Protection of Civilians, France has supported statements at the UN Security Council stressing the importance of respecting IHL and the need to enhance the protection of civilians. 19 At the 2024 UN Security Council open debate on the protection of civilians, the Group highlighted the harm caused by explosive weapons in populated areas across ongoing conflicts and stressed that “the effective protection of civilians and civilian objects must be made a strategic priority in the planning and conduct of military operations.” To that end, the Political Declaration was identified as providing “practical tools that ensure that protection is real and effective,” a sentiment the Group echoed at the 2025 debate where it flagged the Political Declaration as a tool that “plays a critical role in the protection of civilians” and encouraged states to consider endorsing. 20 In 2023, the Group of Friends of Action on Conflict and Hunger, which France is also a member of, also strongly welcomed the Political Declaration, called on other states to join it, and said that the Oslo Conference will provide a critical opportunity to make progress in implementing the Declaration. 21  In 2025, the Group said that “overly permissive interpretations of the rules of international humanitarian law are undermining their key objective, that is, the protection of civilians and civilian objects” and, referencing Gaza, decried the “immense civilian harm has been caused by Israel’s indiscriminate use of explosive weapons in densely populated areas and its obstruction of life-saving aid”. In closing, it urged states to “work for the universal endorsement and implementation of the Political Declaration”. 22

Implementation of the Political Declaration

In February 2024, INEW and EWM conducted a survey into endorser states' national efforts to disseminate and implement the Political Declaration; and in May 2025 EWM conducted a second survey. 23 In these surveys, France reported that it had disseminated the Political Declaration through internal notes to and held internal meetings with ‘appropriate entities’, but did not name these. France also reported that it has designated a focal point for overseeing efforts to implement the Declaration, namely an Editor, at the Directorate of Strategic, Security and Disarmament Affairs with the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs. 24

Regarding a review of existing laws, policies, practices or similar relevant to the protection of civilians to identify areas where further policy development was necessary to meet the Declaration’s commitments, France reported that its Armed Forces undertake a continuous process of reviewing procedures and doctrines based upon feedback, lessons from past operations as well as the evolution of international documents. France cited the Manual of the Law of Military Operations (2022) as the main policy in relation to the use of explosive weapons in populated areas and referenced a series of interservice doctrine publications that cover collateral damage, civil-military cooperation, and explosive remnants of war. 25

  1. ‘Towards a Political Declaration on the Use of Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas: States Need to Ensure that Expressed Commitments Translate into Real Impacts on the Ground’. Reaching Critical Will. 2019.  https://reachingcriticalwill.org/news/latest-news/14451-towards-a-political-declaration-on-the-use-of-explosive-wepons-in-populated-areas-states-need-to-ensure-that-expressed-commitments-translate-into-real-impacts-on-the-ground.  

  1. ‘Protection des populations civiles lors d’opérations en milieu urbain – Consultations informelles’. Irish Department of Foreign Affairs. 18 November 2019.  https://www.dfa.ie/media/dfa/ourrolepolicies/peaceandsecurity/ewipa/France-Written-Submission–18-November-2019.pdf.  

  1.  ’Permanent Mission of France to the United Nations: Written Submission’. Irish Department of Foreign Affairs. 10 February 2020. https://www.dfa.ie/media/dfa/ourrolepolicies/peaceandsecurity/ewipa/France-Written-Submission—10-February-2020.pdf.  

  1. Acheson, R. 2020. ‘Impacts, not intentionality: the imperative of focusing on the effects of explosive weapons in a Political Declaration’. Reaching Critical Will. 14 February 2020. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/news/latest-news/14658-impacts-not-intentionality-the-imperative-of-focusing-on-the-effects-of-explosive-weapons-in-a-political-declaration.  

  1. Rafferty, J., Geyer, K., Acheson, R., 2021. ‘Report on the March 2021 consultations on a Political Declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas’. Reaching Critical Will. 21 March 2021. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/news/latest-news/15213-report-on-the-march-2021-consultations-on-a-political-declaration-on-the-use-of-explosive-weapons-in-populated-areas.  

  1. Irish Department of Foreign Affairs. ‘Watch Back: Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas – Political Declaration Consultations, Day 2’. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pK6v1iIZG8A; ’Permanent Mission of France to the United Nations: Written Submission, Revision 2’. Irish Department of Foreign Affairs. 6-9 April 2022. https://www.dfa.ie/media/dfa/ourrolepolicies/peaceandsecurity/submissions6-9april/France.pdf.  

  1. Varella, L. 2022. ‘States agree to final text of Political Declaration on the use of explosive weapons’. Reaching Critical Will. 22 June 2022. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/news/latest-news/16289-states-agree-to-final-text-of-political-declaration-on-the-use-of-explosive-weapons.   

  1. Irish Department of Foreign Affairs. ‘Watch Back Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas – Dublin Conference – Morning Session.’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2VpYQzoKyo.   

  1. Reaching Critical Will notes from the First International Follow-up Conference in Oslo, Norway, April 2024.  

  1. United Nations Security Council. S/PV.7951. 25 May 2017. https://undocs.org/en/S/PV.7951.  

  1. United Nations Security Council. S/PV.9327. 23 May 2023. https://undocs.org/en/S/PV.9327.  

  1. Young, K. 2023. ‘First Committee Monitor, Vol.21, No.5’. Reaching Critical Will. 4 November 2023. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/1com/FCM23/FCM-2023-No5.pdf.   

  1. “79 ème session de l’Assemblée générale des Nations-Unies Première Commission Intervention de Mme Camille PETIT Ambassadrice, Représentante permanente de la France auprès de la Conférence du Désarmement Cheffe de la délégation française (New York, le 23 octobre 2024  ‘ARMES CONVENTIONNELLES’”, 23 October 2024, https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/1com/1com24/statements/24Oct_France.pdf.  

  1. ‘EU Statement during the May 2011 Security Council Open Debate on the Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict’. Permanent Mission of the European Union to the United Nations. 10 May 2011.  http://www.peacewomen.org/sites/default/files/eu_poc_11may2011_0.pdf; ‘EU Statement during the June 2012 Security Council Open Debate on the Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict’. Permanent Mission of the European Union to the United Nations. 25 June 2012. http://www.peacewomen.org/security-council/security-council-open-debate-protection-civilians-armed-conflict-june-2012/; ‘EU Statement during the August 2013 UN Security Council Open Debate on the Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict’. Permanent Mission of the European Union to the United Nations. 19 August 2013. EU Statement – UN Security Council: Protection of Civilians.’ Permanent Mission of the European Union to the United Nations. 21 May 2024. https://www.eeas.europa.eu/delegations/un-new-york/eu-statement-%E2%80%93-un-security-council-protection-civilians_en?s=63  http://www.peacewomen.org/sites/default/files/european_union_poc_august_2013_debate_0.pdf.

  1. ‘EU Statement to the UN General Assembly 72nd Session First Committee Thematic Discussion on Conventional Weapons’. Permanent Mission of the European Union to the United Nations. 18 October 2017. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/1com/1com17/statements/18Oct_EU.pdf.  

  1. Acheson, R. 2022. ‘UN Security Council Debates War in Cities and the Protection of Civilians.’ Reaching Critical Will, 28 January 2022. https://www.reachingcriticalwill.org/news/latest-news/16009-un-security-council-debates-war-in-cities-and-the-protection-of-civilians. 

  2. ‘EU Statement to the UN General Assembly 80th Session First Committee Thematic Discussion on Conventional Weapons’. Permanent Mission of the European Union to the United Nations. 23 October 2025. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/1com/1com25/statements/23Oct_EU.pdf; ‘EU Statement to the UN General Assembly 78th Session First Committee Thematic Discussion on Conventional Weapons’. Permanent Mission of the European Union to the United Nations. 23 October 2023. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/1com/1com23/statements/23Oct_EU.pdf; ‘EU Statement to the UN General Assembly 77th Session First Committee Thematic Discussion on Conventional Weapons’. Permanent Mission of the European Union to the United Nations. 20 October 2022. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/1com/1com22/statements/20Oct_EU.pdf; ‘EU Statement to the UN General Assembly 76th Session First Committee Thematic Discussion on Conventional Weapons’. Permanent Mission of the European Union to the United Nations. 4 October 2021. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/1com/1com21/statements/4Oct_EU.pdf; ‘EU Statement to the UN General Assembly 75th Session First Committee Thematic Discussion on Conventional Weapons’. Permanent Mission of the European Union to the United Nations. 9 October 2020. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/1com/1com20/statements/9Oct_EU.pdf.

  3. Agenda for Humanity Archives. ‘France’. https://agendaforhumanity.org/stakeholders/commitments/168.html. 

  4. United Nations Security Council. S/PV.9042. 25 May 2022. https://undocs.org/en/S/PV.9042.

  5. United Nations Security Council S/PV.9632 (Resumption 1) 21 May 2024. https://documents.un.org/doc/undoc/pro/n24/140/54/pdf/n2414054.pdf?token=gnNZ75yWJDSvjAuWNa&fe=true; United Nations Security Council. S/PV.9921. 22 May 2025. https://docs.un.org/en/S/PV.9921.

  6. United Nations Security Council. S/PV.9327. 23 May 2023. https://undocs.org/en/S/PV.9327.

  7. United Nations Security Council. S/PV.9921 (Resumption 1) 22 May 2025. https://docs.un.org/en/S/PV.9921%20(Resumption%201).

  8. To view all responses to the state surveys, see the Explosive Weapons Monitor 2023, Chapter III on Universalisation and Implementation of the Political Declaration and EWM. ‘An Assessment of Implementation of the Political Declaration on Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas: Briefing Paper’. November 2025. https://explosiveweaponsmonitor.org/reports/8/an-assessment-of-implementation-of-the-political-declaration/. 

  9. EWM. ‘An Assessment of Implementation of the Political Declaration on Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas: Briefing Paper’. November 2025. https://explosiveweaponsmonitor.org/reports/8/an-assessment-of-implementation-of-the-political-declaration/; and France’s response to INEW’s State Survey on the Implementation of the Political Declaration, April 2024. Available in the ‘Explosive Weapons Monitor 2023’. https://www.explosiveweaponsmonitor.org/2023. 

  10. The survey was answered in French with the following original titles for the policies and publications: Manuel de droit des opérations militaires; Publication interarmées PIA-3.3.9_EDC(2022) N°107/ARM/CICDE/NP du 11 juillet 2022 sur l’estimation des dommages collatéraux; Doctrine interarmées DIA-3.19_CIMIC(2019), n°125/ARM/CICDE/NP du 17 juillet 2019 sur la coopération civilo-militaire; Publication interarmées PIA-7.7.7_REG(2011) N°D-11-009803/DEF/EMA/MA/NP du 15 décembre 2011 sur les restes explosifs de guerre. 

Other State Positions