Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine have taken or consider measures to withdraw from the Convention on the Prohibition of Use, Storage, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personcts and their Destruction-also known as the Ottawa Convention, after the Canadian City where the process was launched.

“These weapons are likely to cause serious and long -term and long -term damage to civilians, including children,” said Volker Türk, the United Nations Human Rights Commissioner, in a statement. “Like the other international humanitarian treaties, the Ottawa Convention was mainly designed to govern the conduct of the parties to armed conflicts.”

“Adhering them to peacetime to withdraw from them in wartime or for newly invoked national security considerations seriously undermines the framework of international humanitarian law.”

A threat to civilians

Anti-personnel mines are one of the two main types of mines and target people-as opposed to anti-vehicle mines. However, because these two mines are triggered automatically, they lead to a large number of civil dead, especially children.

Their fatal risks persist long after the end of hostilities, contaminating agricultural land, playgrounds and houses, and constituting a constant threat to without distrust civilians.

Accessive in 1997, the Ottawa Convention prohibits signatories from using, storing, producing or transferring anti-personal mines due to the threat that these weapons constitute civilians, especially children.

During the two and a half decades since its adoption, the Ottawa Convention has 166 states parties, led to a marked reduction in the use of anti-personal mines.

Reversing trends

However, in recent years, these positive trends have started to reverse with the number of civilians killed and injured by mines increasing by 22% in 2024 – 85% of the victims were civilians and half of them were children.

Despite progress, some 100 million people in 60 countries still live under the threat of terrestrial mines.

In Ukraine, for example, the UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS) estimates that more than 20% of the country’s land is contaminated – amounting to 139,000 square kilometers.

Likewise, terrestrial mines are still a significant threat to Cambodia, decades after the end of the conflict and the years of deactivation efforts.

Maintain international law

Mr. Türk urged all parties to the Ottawa Convention to maintain their international legal obligations concerning anti-personal and non-signs to join the Convention.

“With so many civilians suffering from the use of anti-personal mines, I call all states to abstain from leaving any international humanitarian law and immediately suspending any withdrawal process that could be in progress.”

The promises were made at the opening of the Financing For Development Conference (FFD4), currently underway in the Spanish city of Seville, when the delegates agreed Seville engagement.

During the conference, the UN News spoke to Li junhuaThe United Nations Under-Secretary General for Economic and Social Affairs and Secretary General of the International Summit.

Li Junhua: The adoption of the Seville agreement was an exceptional moment during an event which experienced around sixty heads of state and government and saw 130 major initiatives announced within the framework of the Sevilla platform for actionwhich aims to implement the result document and the financing of the turbochang for sustainable development.

A record number of business leaders from various sectors has actively participated and contributed positively to the entire process and the results of the conference. They all undertook to support the implementation of the new roadmap.

UN News: What advantages do you think that vulnerable communities in developing countries can impatiently wait, as a direct consequence of decisions made here in Seville?

Li Junhua: Seville’s commitment firmly recognizes that the eradication of poverty is essential for the realization of sustainable development. This is the most essential point for all developing countries. It offers a set of shares for a large -scale investment thrust for the Sustainable development objectives (SDD) in the long term. This includes strengthening investments in vital fields such as social protection systems, agrifood systems and inclusive, affordable and quality health systems.

In addition, it aims to strengthen the global response to crises that most affect vulnerable communities. For example, he calls for the implementation of the decision concerning the agreed climate financing of the United Nations Climate Conference in Baku, as well as the fund to respond to loss and damage.

For me, significant stages and commitments have been made to support countries in special situations in order to fill the significant infrastructure gap in the critical sectors. The most vulnerable populations can benefit significantly by obtaining essential services and employment opportunities generated by, for example, energy, transport, ICT [information and communication technology]development of water and sanitation infrastructures.

Finally and above all, there is a strong determination to extend access to financial products and services in society, especially for women, young people, disabled people, displaced people, migrants and other people in vulnerable situations. These are very tangible results for vulnerable communities.

News from the UN: How is this conference a real multilateralism test, at a time when it is more than ever to pressure than ever, and with a deeply uncertain global economic perspective?

Li Junhua: This conference is a critical test of our ability to solve problems together.

We know that, at the base, the sustainable development crisis is a crisis of financing and financing. We have to take up these challenges to bring the SDGs back on the right track, but it is far from easy. Commitments to development financing have a direct impact on national budgets and the reform of international financial architecture will inevitably move the dynamics of power between states.

The fact that the Member States have adopted the Seville agreement by consensus sends a powerful signal that multilateralism can still deliver. Of course, the real challenge now lies in the translation of these commitments into actions. I would therefore say that in the end, the success depends on the collective efforts of all the Member States and all stakeholders.

THE Borrower forum is praised as an important step in efforts to reform the architecture of international debt, supported by the UN and emerge as a key element of Seville agreement Result document.

“It is not only the conversation-it is execution,” said Egyptian Minister of Planning and Economic Development, Dr. Rania Al-Mashat. “” The borrower forum is a real plan, motivated by the countries, to create a shared voice and strategy to deal with the debt challenges. “”

Rebeca Grynspan, Secretary General of United Nations Trade and Development (Trecta), said that developing countries are often confronted with creditors as a united block while negotiating alone. “The voice is not only the ability to speak – it is the power to shape the results. Today, 3.4 billion people live in countries that pay more in debt service than on health or education. ”

The forum – one of the 11 recommendations of the group of experts from the United Nations Secretary General on Debt – will allow countries to share experiences, receive technical and legal advice, promote loans and responsible borrowing standards and strengthen the collective negotiation force.

Its launch deals with long -standing calls from the world South for more inclusive decision -making in a debt system dominated by the interests of creditors.

‘Silent but urgent’

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Zambia, Mumbo Haimbe, told journalists that the initiative Promote “long -term partnerships, mutual respect and shared responsibility” And expressed the will of his country to organize a first meeting.

The Spanish Minister of Finance, Carlos Cuerpo, described the current debt crisis as “silent but urgent” and Called the forum a “moment of Seville” to correspond to the Paris credit club, created almost 70 years ago.

UN special envoy on financing the 2030 agenda Mahmoud Mohieldin said the forum was a direct response to a system that has maintained debtor countries for too long. “” This is the voice, equity – and preventing the next debt crisis before it begins. “”

The launch comes at a time from the distress of increasing debt in the developing world.

The agreement – known in Spanish as the Seville compromiso – Adopted by consensus at the conference, includes a group of commitments on the reform of sovereign debt.

In addition to the care of initiatives led by borrowers, he calls for better transparency of the debt, better coordination between creditors and the exploration of a multilateral legal framework for the restructuring of debt.

It also approves of the sustainability strategies of debt led by the country, suspension clauses of debt for vulnerable climatic nations and greater support for debt swaps for nature and debt for climate – although with stronger guarantees and impact evidence.

Frustration on the “missed opportunity” to fight against the debt crisis

On Wednesday, civil society groups brutally criticized the result adopted in Seville, calling this a missed opportunity to offer a significant reform of a global debt system which paralyzes many developing nations.

Speaking during a press briefing within the conference, Jason Braganza of the Forum and the African Development Network (Afrodad) said that the final result document adopted on the first day – the Seville agreement – was far from what was necessary.

“” This document did not start with a lot of ambition and still managed to be watered down“, He said.” Almost half of African countries face a debt crisis. Instead of investing in health, education and clean water, they pay creditors. »»

Mr. Braganza praised the management of the African group and the alliance of small island states, which fought for a UN framework convention on sovereign debt.

‘False solutions’

Although this ambition was not fully carried out, He welcomed a little breakthrough In the form of a new intergovernmental process which could lay the foundations for a future reform.

Civil society leaders have also warned of the dangers of the so-called “climate debt exchanges”, Mr. Braganza calling them “false solutions” which do not provide a real tax space for developing countries.

Tove Ryding of the European Network on Debt and Development (Eurodad) echoes these concerns, saying: “We are told that there is no money to fight poverty or climate change – but there are. The problem is economic injustice. And the result of this conference reflects business as usual. “”

She underlined the progress made on a new United Nations tax convention as proof that the determined countries can lead to real changes, adding: “If only we had a dollar of tax for each time that we were told that this day would never come. »»

The agreement is bearing fruit for public health

To help fill the gaps in access to public services and policies, and to combat health care reductions that could cost thousands of lives, Spain launched the global health action initiative aimed at revitalizing the entire global health ecosystem.

The initiative, which will channel 315 million euros in the global health system between 2025 and 2027, is supported by main multilateral health organizations and more than 10 countries.