The Ottawa Treaty Today: A Discussion

It has been almost twenty four years since the signing of The Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on the Destruction—popularly known as the Ottawa Treaty. However, significant challenges remain. The USA, Russia, China, India, Pakistan, Iran and some others continue to decline or reject adding their signatures, and in some cases are believed to have continued to make use of these weapons in conflict; and landmines have continued to maim or kill refugees and internally displaced people seeking to return to their homes.

Canada's former Foreign Affairs Minister Lloyd Axworthy and humanitarian Olivia Fernandes will discuss the Ottawa Treaty and its achievements, as well as the ongoing threats that landmines continue to pose to innocent civilian populations, and the practical and policy challenges that remain to be addressed.