Another Nasty Attempt to Prevent Us from Doing Our Job

110 countries met in Dublin last month to negotiate the end of cluster weapons, which contain many smaller weapons that are exploded in mid-air and fall to earth over a wide area. They kill and maim those – men, women, children – who come in contact with them. And it is civilians that are the prime casualty of these weapons. The nations meeting in Dublin signed a treaty to prohibit the use, production, and export of cluster munitions that cause unacceptable harm to civilians; the treaty also calls for the destruction of stockpiles and provides assistance to victims and affected communities.

The country that makes and has the largest number of these weapons is the U.S. We were not in Dublin. Nor were China, Russia, Israel, Egypt, Pakistan, or India. All other major NATO countries signed the treaty.