Delegates from more than 80 countries are meeting in Berlin this week to discuss plans for destruction of cluster bomb stockpiles. So far, 98 countries have signed the Convention on Cluster Munitions. This treaty forbids signatories from using the bombs or engaging in joint military operations with armies that use the weapons. The meetings in Berlin are an encouraging sign that dozens of countries are committed to destroying their stockpiles.
Cluster bombs scatter dozens of smaller explosives across areas the size of football fields. Innocent civilians feel the effects of cluster bombs long after a conflict ends because the bombs often fail to explode on impact.
Hundreds of millions of cluster bombs are still owned by countries, including the United States, that have not signed the treaty.
Click here to learn more about cluster bombs.
