GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Finland hopes to increase mine action funding to 6 million euro annually by 2014 as it complies with its obligations under the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention, or Ottawa Convention, that entered into force for Finland Sunday 1 July, despite overall budget cuts.
The terms of the convention call for Finland to destroy its existing stockpile of mines within four years.
Foreign Affairs Minister Erkki Tuomioja said in Geneva that the country wil “fully comply” and destroy its anti-personnel mines by 2016.
Finland has been active in funding humanitarian mine action since 1991 and has in the past 19 years contributed more than euros 80 million.
All member States of the European Union with the exception of Poland have now ratified or acceded to the Convention.
To date 160 States have joined the Convention. Three months after Finland deposited its instrument of accession, Somalia did the same. The Convention will enter into force for Somalia on 1 October 2012.
The AP Mine Ban Convention was adopted in Oslo in 1997, opened for signature in Ottawa the same year and entered into force on 1 March, 1999.
