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#Lithuania set to withdraw from Convention on Cluster Munitions despite high humanitarian, legal & political costs. @banclusterbombs strongly urges @LRSeimas to reject the proposal. Vote expected 18 July. https://t.co/Lun6k8vBgb pic.twitter.com/zVzwywjLMS
— Ban Cluster Bombs (@banclusterbombs) July 11, 2024

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Lithuania, stay on the right side of history! Don't leave the convention. 

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Lithuania, stay on the right side of history! Don't leave the convention. 

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Lithuania - don't turn your back on the Convention on Cluster Munitions! Such a move undermines a norm meant to protect civilians in Lithuania and around the world!

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3 July 2024: The Lithuanian government approved the MoD draft law to withdraw from the Convention on Cluster Munitions. The draft law has been sent to the parliament.

11 July 2024: The parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee has approved the draft law.

18 July 2024: Sadly Lithuanian parliament @LRSeimas

approved withdrawal from Convention on Cluster Munitions (103-1-4). Horrible day for Lithuania, int'l community, IHL & civilian protection. https://bit.ly/3WtcLqu #ClusterMunitions #IHL

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This weapon was banned for a good reason: 95% of its victims are civilians. Lithuania, don't let your fear blind you.

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This weapon was banned for a good reason: 95% of its victims are civilians. Lithuania, don't let your fear blind you.

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Governments have the responsability to go forward on the protection of human rights, leaving the Cluster Munition treaty is going backwards. Reconsider this decision.

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Governments have the responsability to go forward on the protection of human rights, leaving the Cluster Munition treaty is going backwards. Reconsider this decision.

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Dove symbol of peace and flag of Lithuania. Dove with Lithuania ...

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Protect your country, ban cluster munitions!

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Protect your country, ban cluster munitions!

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Lithuania,

Stay in the Convention on Cluster Munitions to protect the rule of law and your citizens.

Possessing cluster munitions has never been a deterrent and using them always kills civilians during the conflict and for decades after. There is a reason the majority of NATO has banned these weapons, leaving the Convention will make interoperability with your allies more difficult.

No security threat is eliminated by obtaining a weapon that will end up contaminating your land and killing your citizens.

Your country is too beautiful to risk using cluster munitions.

Erin from Canada

Lietuva,

Laikykitės Konvencijos dėl kasetinių šaudmenų, kad apsaugotumėte teisinę valstybę ir savo piliečius.

Kasetinių šaudmenų turėjimas niekada nebuvo atgrasymo priemonė, o juos naudojant konflikto metu ir dešimtmečius po jo visada žūva civiliai. Yra priežastis, dėl kurios dauguma NATO uždraudė šiuos ginklus, nes pasitraukus iš konvencijos, sąveika su jūsų sąjungininkais bus sunkesnė.

Įsigijus ginklą, kuris užterš jūsų žemę ir nužudys jūsų piliečius, jokia grėsmė saugumui nepašalinama.

Jūsų šalis per graži, kad rizikuotumėte naudoti kasetinius šaudmenis.

Erin iš Kanados

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Lithuania don't leave the Convention! Over 60% of the world’s nations, including 24 NATO and 21 EU states, are CCM States Parties. Don't let fear guide your decisions, remain on the good side of history.

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Lithuania don't leave the Convention! Over 60% of the world’s nations, including 24 NATO and 21 EU states, are CCM States Parties. Don't let fear guide your decisions, remain on the good side of history.

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Cluster Munitions have been banned in over 100 countries due to their excessive harm to civilian populations. Withdrawing the Convention on Cluster Munitions would not ensure the security threat ends.

Lithuania, having Cluster Munitions would not reduce any logistical efforts or costs by half, it would double increase the human casualites, land contamination and affect the social fabric.

Please, protect your people, protect your country ¡do not give up Lithuania!

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Lithuania stay on the right side of history!

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Lithuania stay on the right side of history!

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Lithuania's withdrawal from the Convention on Cluster Munitions would put civilian lives at risk as well would erode the rule of law and norms against indiscriminate weapons.

Cluster munitions will not help you win any war but they will make it difficult, dangerous and expensive to win the peace!

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Lithuania's withdrawal from the Convention on Cluster Munitions would put further civilian lives at risk. @GitanasNauseda, reconsider this decision. #StopClusterBombs, #KeepTheConvention, #NoToClusterBombs

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Lithuania, don't risk harming civilians! 

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Lithuania, don't risk harming civilians! 

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Cluster munitions are known to mostly have civilian casualties, with a high number of child casualties. These weapons are not effective and will only cause civilian suffering. Please reconsider your decision and continue to protect civilians by being a part of this important, life-saving Convention!

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The world is watching. Lithuania's withdrawal would further erode the rule of law and norms against indiscriminate weapons.

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As a concerned youth, I urge Lithuania to stay committed to the Convention on Cluster Munitions. Withdrawing would jeopardize our shared values of peace and humanitarianism. Let's continue to lead the way in banning these harmful weapons.

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Lithuania, Take a Stand Against Cluster Munitions Now!

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Lithuania, Take a Stand Against Cluster Munitions Now!

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Please Remain Committed to the Convention on Cluster Munitions. Your Leadership Matters!

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We understand fear of Russian aggression....

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We understand fear of Russian aggression....

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We understand the very real threat Russia poses to several neighbouring states which have the shared history of formerly having been a part of the USSR.

Russia currently is engaged in violations of international humanitarian law, including cluster munition use for which its been internationally condemned, in its illegal war on Ukraine.

Succumbing to seeking possession of an inherently indiscriminate weapon, as cluster munitions are, places Lithuania on moral par with Russia. Possession of some cluster munitions will not ultimately ensure her survival, alliances (mostly with non-cluster possessing states) is her best defence.

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Lithuania, please maintain your commitment to the Convention on Cluster Munitions. Upholding this treaty is crucial for protecting civilian lives and promoting global peace. Your leadership in this matter is essential for fostering a safer and more humane world.

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By withdrawing from the convention, Lithuania is not just breaking an international agreement – it is opening the door to future contamination. The same land where its children play, its citizens farm, and build their homes could become littered with cluster munition remnants, endangering current and future generations for years to come.

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Lithuania…..

Where are your morals and your human conscience If you withdraw from the Convention Banning Cluster Bomb ?

do not be a participant in the killing of civilians and children by withdrawing.

Continue working, no to cluster bombs.

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Withdrawing from the Convention on Cluster Munitions will stain Lithuania’s otherwise excellent reputation on this humanitarian concern and increase the risk of civilian harm. Lithuania’s lawmakers should reject this ill-considered proposal and reaffirm their support for the ban on cluster munitions.

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(Berlin) - Lithuania's parliament should reject a government proposal to withdraw from the 2008 treaty banning cluster munitions, Human Rights Watch said today. If approved, Lithuania would be the first country to leave the Convention on Cluster Munitions, which 112 countries have ratified.

"Lithuania's lawmakers should reject this ill-considered proposal and reaffirm their support for the Convention on Cluster Munitions," said Mary Wareham, deputy crisis, conflict, and arms director at Human Rights Watch. "Withdrawing from the convention will stain Lithuania's otherwise excellent reputation on cluster munitions and increase the risk of civilian harm."

Cluster munitions can be fired from the ground by artillery, rockets, missiles, and mortar projectiles, or dropped by aircraft. They typically open in the air, dispersing multiple submunitions or bomblets over a wide area. Many submunitions fail to explode on initial impact, leaving duds that can indiscriminately injure and kill, like landmines, for years until they are cleared and destroyed.

The Convention on Cluster Munitions is a lifesaving instrument that comprehensively bans cluster munitions and requires the destruction of stockpiles, clearance of cluster munition remnants, and assistance to victims of the weapons. Lithuania actively participated in negotiating the convention and was among the first countries to sign it in Oslo on December 3, 2008, leading by example among countries from the Baltic region. Upon signing, Lithuania pledged its full support for the convention, describing it as "an outstanding example of cooperation" that it hoped would continue.

However, since 2023, Lithuania's defense minister has advocated for the country to withdraw from the convention, asserting that cluster munitions are a necessary weapon due to changes in its national security situation since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. On July 11, 2024, the Lithuanian government submitted a proposal to parliament recommending that Lithuania withdraw from the Convention on Cluster Munitions.

"Ever-changing national security considerations don't affect the critical humanitarian reasons that led Lithuania and more than 100 other countries to adopt the cluster munitions ban in the first place," Wareham said.

In its official transparency reports for the Convention on Cluster Munitions, Lithuania confirmed that it has never produced, stockpiled, transferred, or used cluster munitions. It has actively participated throughout the convention's meetings and has repeatedly expressed concern at the use of cluster munitions by Russia, Syria, and other countries. The Lithuanian government's proposal to withdraw from the convention will overshadow this positive track record and reputation, Human Rights Watch said.

Human Rights Watch, the United Nations, and others have reported that repeated Russian cluster munitions attacks have killed and injured hundreds of Ukrainian civilians since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022. Ukrainian forces have also used cluster munitions, resulting in civilian casualties. Since July 2023, the administration of US President Joe Biden has approved five transfers to Ukraine of US cluster munitions delivered by artillery projectiles and ballistic missiles. Russia, Ukraine, and the United States have not joined the Convention on Cluster Munitions.

Cluster munitions predominantly harm civilians. The Cluster Munition Monitor 2023 report found that 95 percent of people reported killed or wounded by cluster munitions in 2022, in which the victim's status was recorded, were civilians. Among victims whose age group was reported, children accounted for 71 percent of casualties from cluster munition remnants.

The massive humanitarian costs of cluster munitions include civilian casualties at the time of attack and long afterward, as well as the long-term social and economic impact of submunition duds.

At the Eleventh Meeting of States Parties of the Convention on Cluster Munitions in September 2023, member countries including Lithuania condemned "any use of cluster munitions by any actor." They expressed "grave concern at the significant increase in civilian casualties and the humanitarian impact resulting from the repeated and well documented use of cluster munitions" since 2021, particularly with respect to "the use of cluster munitions in Ukraine."

The convention has saved countless lives through its humanitarian provisions, Human Rights Watch said. Since the convention's entry into force on May 30, 2008, member countries have destroyed 1.489 million cluster munitions and 179 million submunitions, 100 percent of the cluster munition stocks once held by the states parties.

Members of the Convention on Cluster Munitions include 25 of the 32 NATO member states and 21 European Union member states. This widespread support demonstrates that most governments, including many of Lithuania's closest allies, support the ban on cluster munitions.

"Countries that have banned cluster munitions should urge Lithuania to not withdraw from this hugely important convention," Wareham said. "They have a responsibility to discourage others from using, producing, stockpiling, or transferring cluster munitions because of the foreseeable risk of civilian harm."
Human Rights Watch is a co-founder of the Cluster Munition Coalition, the global coalition of nongovernmental organizations working to eradicate cluster munitions, and contributes to its Cluster Munition Monitor reporting initiative.

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Lithuania: Don't Leave Global Ban on Cluster Munitions

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Lithuania's parliament should reject a government proposal to withdraw from the 2008 treaty banning cluster munitions, Human Rights Watch said today. If approved, Lithuania would be the first country to leave the Convention on Cluster Munitions, which 112 countries have ratified.

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PSALM says don't forget the youngest victims...children!

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Lithuania....don't turn your back on CCM

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Lithuania....don't turn your back on CCM

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Lithuania’s parliament should reject a government proposal to withdraw from the 2008 treaty banning cluster munitions.The Cluster Munition Monitor 2023 report found that 95 percent of people reported killed or wounded by cluster munitions in 2022, in which the victim’s status was recorded, were civilians. Among victims whose age group was reported, CHILDREN accounted for 71 percent of casualties from cluster munition remnants.

West Virginia Campaign to Ban Landmines and Cluster Bombs/PSALM Students Against Landmines and Cluster Bombs

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To the members of the Lithuanian Parliament: Please vote for your country to remain in the Convention banning cluster bombs and not to withdraw. Otherwise, history will record that you did not respect and protect human rights. Shape your country's history by safeguarding people and their rights, and contribute to the protection of humanity by staying in the Convention.

Thank you,

Raed Mokaled

The father of martyr Ahmad Mokaled

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Ever since Lithuania and Chile successfully got the first-ever UN Security Council resolution on cluster munition use (in South Sudan) passed, I have sung Lithuania's praises. I was proud to work with your ambassador and diplomats to make this happen. You are a leader in this space and recognize that cluster bombs primarily kill civilians, please remain so!

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It's very sad that we have this regressive development. It can only take all of us to make this world a safe place to live for everyone. The Lithuanian government should take heed of our cries and reconsider this decision.

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It's very sad that we have this regressive development. It can only take all of us to make this world a safe place to live for everyone. The Lithuanian government should take heed of our cries and reconsider this decision.

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Please carefully consider your proposed action! It is far too easy to break a contract, a treaty, and to create a huge amount of damage to innocent people! It is far too hard to undo that damage, to heal the damaged people, the defenceless citizens who will be harmed by cluster weapons.

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This weapon was banned for good reason. Lithuania, vote to keep it that way.

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This weapon was banned for good reason. Lithuania, vote to keep it that way.

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Many years ago, I used cluster bombs. I thought I knew all about them - that they had utility despite the consequences. I was wrong. I have spent my later years clearing them. I know a lot more now. This is a weapon that causes unacceptable harm, that kills and maims indiscriminately. There is no balance here between military utility and the harm they cause: unacceptable is unacceptable. Lithuanian parliamentarians, your leadership is needed. Vote to keep Lithuania in the Convention.

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When cluster munitions are used, civilians are the main victims. Protect civilians and stay a part of the Convention.

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Lithuania, don't be an exception on the right side of history! Stay part of the Convention and protect the future of humanity! #NoClusterBombs

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Lithuania - your children will bear the brunt of your hasty decision. This is a short-term political move that will have long-term humanitarian implications, both for the people of Lithuania and around the world.

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Lithuania...don't turn away from the Convention on Cluster Munitions 

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Lithuania...don't turn away from the Convention on Cluster Munitions 

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Children take the brunt of cluster bomb injuries.  The wounds are both physical and psychological.  We are deeply concerned about the lifelong trauma cluster bombs cause children. Please uphold the treaty and ensure the safety of civilians, especially children.

Matt and Elizabeth,

PSALM:Students Against Landmines and Cluster Bombs/West Virginia Campaign to Ban Landmines and Cluster Bombs

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Lithuania....support the Convention on Cluster Munitions 

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Lithuania....support the Convention on Cluster Munitions 

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Megan, PSALM: Students Against Landmines and Cluster Bombs

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Please stand as a beacon of courage! West Virginia Campaign to Ban Landmines and Cluster Bombs USA

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Lithuania....Don't Turn Away from  the Convention on Cluster Munitions 

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Lithuania....Don't Turn Away from  the Convention on Cluster Munitions 

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We hope you will stand with us and stay with the CCM.PSALM USA

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CMC NEWS: Lithuania Considers Leaving Convention on Cluster Munitions

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CMC NEWS: Lithuania Considers Leaving Convention on Cluster Munitions

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Read our article in here.

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It is not a time of withdrawal from the agreement to ban this indiscriminate weapons, the Cluster Munitions. It is rather a time of need to bring in the whole world to ban it. So, it is unacceptable that Lithuania is going to coute the ban. It is sad to hear such news when we striving to bring in as many countries as possible to join the ban. So, we urge the Lithuania government to think not only once but twice or even more to reconsider its decision and come back to its original status that supports the absolute ban of this weapons and rather encourage those non-state parties to join as soon as possible.

Bekele Gonfa

Executive Director

SRaRO, Ethiopia

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Lithuania keek up with your commitment to ban Cluster Munitions, to save people lives!

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Please reconsider! Don't leave the  CCM! 

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Please reconsider! Don't leave the  CCM! 

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Every child, mother, father, and citizen deserves to live a life free from the fear of cluster munition. These indiscriminate weapons have been banned in over 100 countries due to their functions not working as planned. 30% of cluster munitions that were dropped on Laos did not detonate...leaving 80 million still littered on the ground to this day, waiting to kill.

Cluster munitions will not win war. They only destroy innocent civilians.

-Anna, Manager of Operations and Community Outreach @ Legacies of War

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Cluster munitions are a short term weapon with long term consequences. I beseech you not to make this rash decision. Stay on the right path and do not pull out from your commitment

Murphy Nosanchuk

Advocacy Ambassador

Legacies of War

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Please Think of the Consequences: Stay in the Convention on Cluster Munitions and Ban Indiscriminate Weapons

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Please Think of the Consequences: Stay in the Convention on Cluster Munitions and Ban Indiscriminate Weapons

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I urge Lithuania to uphold its commitment to the Convention on Cluster Munitions. While the impulse to use such weapons in defense from an aggressor like Russia is understandable, doing so perpetuates a devastating cycle of violence and arms escalation. Cluster munitions inflict indiscriminate harm on civilians, leaving a deadly legacy for generations. We must learn from the painful lessons of the American Secret War in Laos: bombing campaigns do not win hearts and minds, but instead sow long-term suffering. Please choose a path that prioritizes peace and protects innocent lives; uphold your commitment to the Convention on Cluster Munitions.

Taryn Sebba

Peachey Peace Fellow

Legacies of War