Loading

Slovakia

HAS ENDORSED THE POLITICAL DECLARATION

Slovakia 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. Slovakia participated in the Vienna Conference on the Protection of Civilians in Urban Warfare in October 20191 and in the second round of consultations in Geneva in 2020 but did not issue any statements.2

At the Dublin Conference in November 2022, Slovakia underlined that civilians suffer devastating harm not only directly, but also through long-lasting indirect effects. It also expressed its belief that the improvement of national policies and strengthening international cooperation, including through exchange of expertise as well as good policies and practice, could strengthen the protection of civilians. Slovakia said that the commitments in the area of victim assistance, risk education and explosive remnants of war should mitigate humanitarian consequences arising from the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. It also stressed its commitment to the implementation of the Political Declaration and through the regular collective follow-up process.3

Statements and positions

Slovakia has spoken on explosive weapons in populated areas in at the UN Security Council open debate on the protection of civilians in armed conflict, arguing that “more effective mechanisms to monitor the use of explosive weapons in heavily populated areas must be created.”4 At the UN General Assembly First Committee in 2022, Slovakia referenced the harmful use of explosive weapons in populated areas across the world.5

Slovakia has also repeatedly aligned with other states to deliver statements on explosive weapons in populated areas.  As a member of the European Union (EU), Slovakia 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. This includes at several UN Security Council open debates on the Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict 6 and at the General Debate of UN General Assembly First Committee7, 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.8 The EU, with Slovakia signing on, has also repeatedly welcomed the Political Declaration on explosive weapons in populated areas – at the 2022 Dublin Conference, the 2022 and 2023 UN General Assembly First Committee (where it highlighted the work ahead for implementing the Declaration’s commitments), and at the 2023 UN Security Council open debate on the Protection of Civilians.

Slovakia 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.”9

  1. ‘Vienna Conference Marks Turning Point as States Support Negotiation of an International Political Declaration on Explosive Weapons’. INEW. October 2019. https://www.inew.org/vienna-conference-marks-turning-point-as-states-support-negotiation-of-an-international-political-declaration-on-explosive-weapons/.

  2. Boillot, L. 2020. ‘More than 70 States Engage in Discussions on Political Declaration’. Article 36. 27 February 2020. https://article36.org/updates/more-than-70-states-engage-in-discussions-on-political-declaration/. 

  3. ‘Statement by H. E. Mr. Andrej Droba, Ambassador of the Slovak Republic to Ireland at the EWIPA Conference’. Irish Department of Foreign Affairs. 18 November 2022. https://www.dfa.ie/media/dfa/ourrolepolicies/peaceandsecurity/ewipa/Slovakia.pdf.

  4. United Nations Security Council. S/PV.7109. 12 February 2014. Available from: https://undocs.org/en/S/PV.7109.

  5. Young, K. 2022. ‘First Committee Monitor, Vol.20, No.2’. Reaching Critical Will. 8 October 2022. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/1com/FCM22/FCM-2022-No2.pdf.

  6. ‘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. http://www.peacewomen.org/sites/default/files/european_union_poc_august_2013_debate_0.pdf.

  7. ‘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.

  8. 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.

  9. Agenda for Humanity. ‘Slovakia’. https://agendaforhumanity.org/stakeholders/commitments/351.html.

Other State Positions