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Slovenia

HAS ENDORSED THE POLITICAL DECLARATION

Slovenia 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. In a written contribution to the consultations, Slovenia suggested including an appeal for universalisation of relevant instruments in the field of disarmament.1 It also agreed with a proposal that the improvised explosive devices (IEDs) get a more prominent place in the Declaration, and suggested the inclusion of a reference to risk education on explosive remnants of war (ERW) and IED in paragraph 4.3.2 At the signing conference in November 2022, Slovenia underlined the long-lasting consequences of the use of explosive weapons in populated areas and said it attaches great importance to victims' assistance. Slovenia said that efforts should continue to focus on providing a safe environment for all and ensuring the social and economic inclusion of survivors.3

Statements and priorities

Slovenia has on several occasions spoken on explosive weapons in populated areas in multilateral forums: speaking at UN security council open debates on the protection of civilians in armed conflict, Slovenia has raised concerns over the harms caused by explosive weapons in populated areas.4 During the UN General Assembly First Committee, Slovenia welcomed the conclusion of the negotiations on the Political Declaration.5

Alongside its individual statements, Slovenia has repeatedly aligned with other states to deliver statements on explosive weapons in populated areas. As a member of the European Union (EU), Slovenia 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 Slovenia 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.

In 2018 and 2019, Slovenia joined some 50 and 71 states respectively to endorse joint statements on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas at the UN General Assembly First Committee, calling attention to the devastating and long-lasting humanitarian impact of the use of explosive weapons in populated areas and urging states to reverse the trend of high levels of civilian harm 9. As part of the Human Security Network, Slovenia has also endorsed two statements addressing the risk of explosive weapons in populated areas, emphasising the importance of data collection, and calling on states to refrain from the use of explosive weapons in populated areas at the UN Security Council Open Debate on the Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict in 201310 and 2014.11 

Slovenia 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.”12

  1. It proposed the following text within Section 3 or 4 of the draft: “Strengthen the efforts pertaining to the universalisation of relevant disarmament instruments, such as the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction and the Convention on Cluster Munitions.”

  2. ‘EWIPA Political Declaration: Proposals of the Republic of Slovenia’. Permanent Mission of Slovenia to the United Nations. 2020. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/ewipa/declaration/documents/written-submission-Slovenia.pdf.

  3. ‘Statement of Slovenia at the Dublin Conference – EWIPA.’ Republic of Slovenia in Ireland. 18 November 2022. https://www.dfa.ie/media/dfa/ourrolepolicies/peaceandsecurity/ewipa/Slovenia.pdf.

  4. United Nations Security Council. S/PV.6531. 10 May 2011. Available from: https://undocs.org/en/S/PV.6531(Resumption1); United Nations Security Council. S/PV.7951. 25 May 2017. Available from: https://undocs.org/en/S/PV.7951; United Nations Security Council. S/PV.8534. 23 May 2019. Available from: https://undocs.org/en/S/PV.8534. 

  5. Young. K. 2022. ‘First Committee Monitor, Vol.20, No.3’. Reaching Critical Will. 15 October 2022. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/1com/FCM22/FCM-2022-No3.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. ‘UNGA73 First Committee Joint Statement on Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas (explosive weapons in populated areas)’. Permanent Mission of Ireland to the United Nations. 25 October 2018. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/1com/1com18/statements/25Oct_explosive weapons in populated areas.pdf; ‘UNGA74 First Committee Joint Statement on Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas’. Permanent Mission of Ireland to the United Nations. 24 October 2019. Available from https://article36.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/UNGA74-joint-statement-on-explosive-weapons-in-populated-areas.pdf; ‘Seventy-one States call for Action on Impact of Explosive Weapons in Joint Statement to UN General Assembly’. International Network on Explosive Weapons. October 2019. Available from: https://www.inew.org/seventy-one-states-call-for-action-on-impact-of-explosive-weapons-in-joint-statement-to-un-general-assembly/.

  10. United Nations Security Council. S/PV.7019. 19 August 2013. Available from:  https://undocs.org/en/S/PV.7019.

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

  12. Agenda for Humanity. ‘Slovenia’. https://agendaforhumanity.org/stakeholders/commitments/254.html. 

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