Policy

The Republic of Armenia has not acceded to the Convention on Cluster Munitions. Armenia has consistently stated that it cannot join the Mine Ban Treaty unless Azerbaijan does so and a settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is reached.[1] In a statement to the convention’s intersessional meetings in April 2013, Armenia described the Convention on Cluster Munitions “as one of the principal instruments of the International Humanitarian Law to achieve the goal of elimination of an entire category of injurious conventional weapons” and said “We highly value it as an important step to respond in a credible and efficient manner to the humanitarian challenges posed by certain advancements in military technology.”[2]

Yet the representative cited Armenia’s long-standing concern relating to “the security environment in our region” and said there was a “danger of a military imbalance, especially taking into account that Armenia’s neighboring countries possess stockpiles of cluster munitions.” He concluded, “Armenia fully supports the aims of the Convention and hopes that the circumstances will change sometime soon and a positive decision will be taken.”[3]

Armenia did not participate in the Oslo Process that created the Convention on Cluster Munitions.[4] Armenia participated for the first time in a meeting of the convention in September 2011, when it attended the Second Meeting of States Parties in Beirut as an observer. Armenia attended the convention’s Third Meeting of States Parties in Oslo, Norway in September 2012, but did not make a statement. Armenia did not participate in the convention’s Fourth Meeting of States Parties in Lusaka, Zambia in September 2013 or intersessional meetings held in April 2014.

Armenia has voted in favor of UN General Assembly (UNGA) resolutions condemning Syria’s cluster munition use, including Resolution 68/182 on 18 December 2013, which expressed “outrage” at “continued widespread and systematic gross violations of human rights…including those involving the use of…cluster munitions.”[5]

Armenia has not joined the Mine Ban Treaty and is not party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons.

Use, production, transfer, and stockpiling

Armenia declared in March 2012 and again in April 2013 that it “does not produce, export, stockpile or use cluster munitions and does not intend to do so.”[6]

Armenia has stated that it has not “encountered remnants of cluster munitions on the territory of Armenia.”[7] Submunition contamination has been identified in Nagorno-Karabakh, a territory claimed by Azerbaijan but occupied and under the control of a breakaway government since the 1988–1994 conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia.[8] There are also reports of contamination in other parts of occupied Azerbaijan, adjacent to Nagorno-Karabakh, which are under the control of Armenian forces.[9]

Contamination and Impact

Mine and explosive remnants of war (ERW) contamination in the Republic of Armenia is primarily the consequence of its armed conflict with Azerbaijan in 1988–94, which saw landmines laid by both sides. The most heavily contaminated areas are along the borders and confrontation lines with Azerbaijan, including the area in and around Nagorno-Karabakh and other territories controlled by the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Forces. Armenia’s border with Georgia has been cleared of mines, whereas the border with Turkey, also mined during the Soviet era, is still contaminated.[1]

The 2005 Landmine Impact Survey (LIS) identified 102 suspect hazardous areas (SHAs) in five districts bordering Azerbaijan. The LIS estimated the contaminated area at more than 321km² of land, affecting 60 communities.[2] In August 2012, HALO Trust conducted a partial survey of 17 sites and was able to cancel 80% of the area identified by the LIS for these sites. However, HALO activities were suspended following a grant awarded by the United States (US) Department of State to the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action (FSD) to resurvey Armenia.[3]

FSD started a non-technical survey (NTS) in September 2012, which was completed in May 2013.[4] According to FSD and the Armenian Center for Humanitarian Demining and Expertise (ACHDE), the survey found 131 dangerous areas in four districts bordering Azerbaijan. These areas cover a total of 47km² of land, of which 17 SHAs cover 26km² and 114 confirmed hazardous areas (CHAs) cover 21km².[5] Approximately 35,000 people in 42 communities were found to be impacted by contamination.[6] However, these figures do not include two communities known to be contaminated which, during the FSD survey, were not accessible for security reasons.[7]

FSD was mandated by the government of Armenia to survey impacted communities outside the military restricted zone. Therefore, 50 SHAs that fall inside the military perimeter were not included in the survey.[8] The NTS was conducted only within the internationally recognized boundaries of Armenia.[9]

During NTS, FSD teams collected information on 271 non-recent mine victims. These records were submitted to the ICRC, which maintains a mine victim database in Armenia.[10] In addition, the ACHDE is the coordination body to which all casualty data is submitted for inclusion into the national IMSMA database. [11]

Territory seized from Azerbaijan during the conflict is believed to be significantly contaminated by mines and ERW, including unexploded submunitions.[12] However, the precise extent of contamination in those districts is unknown.

Mine Action Program

In 2002, the ACHDE was established under the Ministry of Defence as a state agency for mine action activities.[13] In February 2012, the government of Armenia changed the legal status of the ACHDE to a civilian, non-commercial state organization responsible for conducting surveys, identifying contaminated areas, and implementing mine clearance operations. Under its new status, the ACHDE can negotiate with international demining organizations, accept international funding, sign contracts, and receive assistance.[14]

In January 2014, the Foundation for Demining and Demolition (FDD) was established as a national, civilian, and non-commercial demining organization in Armenia with support from the ACHDE, Geowulf LLC, FSD, and the government of Armenia.[15] Its main tasks are to conduct humanitarian demining and to destroy expired or obsolete arms and ammunition in Armenia.[16]

FSD has been present in Armenia since 2012.[17] In mid-2012, HALO briefly operated in Armenia mainly in NTS activities and, at the end of 2013, it deployed staff in one of Armenia’s affected regions with a view to starting technical survey (TS) and clearance activities in April 2014.[18]

Strategic planning

In March 2013, a discussion was held at the Ministry of Defence on the nationwide survey carried out in 2012–13.[19] The chair of the ACHDE’s council, Ara Nazaryan, stated that “the drafting of a national mine action program, its approval and subsequent implementation are priority tasks for comprehensive demining activities in the territory of the Republic of Armenia.”[20] Based on the NTS findings, the ACHDE will develop a national mine action plan to be submitted to the Armenian government, which will be implemented by the ACHDE following governmental approval.[21]

One of the objectives of the Armenian Mine Action Strategy 2007–11 was reduction through TS and clearance of 2.2% (7km²) of the SHAs identified by the LIS and 6.8% of the SHAs outside the restricted military zone.[22] Little progress was achieved in this regard.[23]

In 2013, with the assistance of FSD, the ACHDE developed the Armenian National Mine Action Standards (NMAS), which have been submitted to the government for approval. With the support of FSD, the ACHDE has set up and manages the national IMSMA database.[24]

Land Release

Armenia does not report systematically on its mine clearance operations. In the past, demining in Armenia has been slow and productivity rates low, with the Ministry of Defence reporting only some 2km² of mined land cleared from 2002 to the end of 2008.[25] During 2013, only NTS operations were conducted by FSD with the support of the ACHDE.[26]

In September 2013, HALO opened an office in the Kapan region in order to initiate its new demining activities under a US$600,000 grant awarded by the US Department of State for a two-year period (2013–15).[27] On 1 April 2014, HALO’s demining and survey teams, together with manual demining and explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) units of Armenia’s Peace Keeping Engineering Battalion (PKEB) started TS and clearance operations near the town of Kapan, in Armenia’s most contaminated region of Syunik.[28]

The demining project aims to release 100,000m² (0.1km²) of mined area by November 2014 while training the PKEB to international standards so that they can manage demining operations by the end of 2015.[29] Preparations will be conducted in 16 of the total of 114 CHAs identified by the FSD survey.[30] Activities will be coordinated by and conducted under the authority of the ACHDE with technical support from FSD.[31]

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, although Armenia has not adhered to the Mine Ban Treaty, it voluntarily provides information on antipersonnel mines to the UN and to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) for transparency and confidence-building.[32] Whatever information is provided, however, is not publicly available.

Support for Mine Action

Armenia has not reported on its support to mine action in the last four years. In August 2009, Armenia reported providing all financial resources for the ACHDE since 2008. No details were provided.[33]

In fiscal year 2012, the US Department of State awarded FSD a US$391,000 grant to conduct the resurvey in order to further reduce the 102 SHAs of the 2005 LIS.[34] In 2013, FSD received US$132,000 and in 2014 another $300,000 from the Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement in the US Department of State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs (PM/WRA). In addition, FSD contributed $40,503 of its own funds to support mine action in Armenia.[35]

In 2013, HALO received $600,000 from the US Department of State to conduct TS and clearance and train Armenian demining personnel between September 2013 and September 2015.[36]

Between 2009 and 2012, ITF Enhancing Human Security implemented the first phase of a Victims Assistance project, “Socio-Economic Reintegration Program for Mine Victims in Armenia,” financed by the Austrian Development Agency and South Korea. At the end of 2012, the same donors provided $246,445 for a three-year Phase 2 of the project.[37]

Casualty Overview

Six new mine casualties were identified in the Republic of Armenia in 2013 in two separate incidents. Two children were killed in Shirak province.[1] The other four casualties were soldiers deployed on a mission on the northeastern border of Armenia.[2] In 2012, no new mine/explosive remnants of war (ERW) casualties had been identified in Armenia, however in 2011 six mine casualties were recorded.[3]

At least 600 mine/ERW casualties (123 killed; 326 injured; 151 of unknown status) have been reported in Armenia since 1990.[4] The Armenia Landmine Impact Survey from 2005 identified 394 casualties (110 killed; 284 injured).[5] The subsequent Non-Technical Mine Action Survey conducted by the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action (SFD) between November 2012 and May 2013 with the view to complete the 2005 survey identified a total of 271 non-recent victims while noting that it was impossible to log all victims during the survey.[6]

Victim Assistance

The Monitor has identified at least 326 mine/ERW survivors in Armenia. Other reports have recorded over 580 “mine victims” which could include family members of people who have been killed by mines/ERW.[7]

In 2013, the ICRC continued to support the Armenian Red Cross Society (ARCS) in a program of data collection on the needs of mine/ERW survivors. By the end of 2013, ARCS volunteers had collected data on 336 mine/ERW survivors and their families. This database is managed by the ARCS in close cooperation and collaboration with the Armenian Center for Humanitarian Demining and Expertise.[8]

Armenia has no victim assistance coordination or specific victim assistance strategy. Mine/ERW survivors receive the same services as other persons with disabilities.

The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs is responsible for protecting the rights of persons with disabilities, but it reportedly failed to do that effectively.[9]

In 2013, the International Organization for Migration in Armenia continued a socioeconomic reintegration project for survivors supported by ITF Enhancing Human Security that began in 2009. Project activities included micro-credit, skills training, and enhancing government ownership of victim assistance.[10]

In 2013, ICRC teams continued livelihood-support activities for the most vulnerable people in the Tavush province, one of the most mine/ERW-affected regions of Armenia, on the basis of a needs assessment the ICRC conducted in 2011.[11]

The law prohibits discrimination against persons with any disability; however, discrimination remained a problem. The law and a special government decree mandated accessibility to buildings for persons with disabilities, but very few buildings were accessible. Persons with disabilities experienced problems in virtually all spheres of life, including healthcare, social and psychological rehabilitation, education, transportation, communication, access to employment, and social protection. Social acceptance was even more difficult for women with disabilities. According to official data, more than 90% of persons with disabilities who were able to work were unemployed.[12]

Armenia ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) on 22 September 2010.

In September 2012, the United States (US) awarded a grant of US$391,000 to the Swiss Foundation for Demining (Fondation Suisse de Déminage) to support a resurvey to further reduce the 102 suspected hazardous areas that had been identified in the 2005 Landmine Impact Survey.[1]