XXXIX ROUND TABLE ON CURRENT ISSUES OF

XXXIX ROUND TABLE ON CURRENT ISSUES
OF INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW
“WEAPONS AND THE INTERNATIONAL RULE OF LAW”
Sanremo, 8th – 10th September, 2016
Opening Address by H. E. Ambassador Vinicio Mati
Permanent Representative of Italy to the Conference on Disarmament
Grazie Presidente
Signor Sindaco di Sanremo,
Signore e Signori,
Desidero in primo luogo esprimere il mio più vivo ringraziamento per l'invito a partecipare all'apertura dei lavori della trentanovesima edizione della Tavola Rotonda sull'attualità del Diritto Internazionale Umanitario organizzata dall'Istituto Internazionale di Sanremo.
Un sentito ringraziamento va anche al Comitato Internazionale della Croce Rossa ed alla sua rappresentante oggi qui presente, la Vice-Presidente M.me Christine Beerli, per la cooperazione
nell'organizzazione dell'evento.
Un cordiale saluto anche al Dottor Miguel Serpa Soares, Under Secretary General for Legal Affairs delle Nazioni Unite.
Ho l'onore e il piacere oggi di farmi interprete del saluto e del più cordiale augurio del Ministro
degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale, Onorevole Paolo Gentiloni, impossibilitato a partecipare personalmente ma che ha voluto accordare il suo Patrocinio a questo annuale appuntamento che punteggia tradizionalmente la vita dell'Istituto. Patrocinio cui si affianca quello
del Ministero della Difesa.
Sanremo non è soltanto una bellissima città universalmente conosciuta nel mondo per le sue ben
note attrazioni turistiche e culturali, ma ha anche il merito di ospitare questo straordinario centro
di eccellenza per lo sviluppo delle attività giuridico-internazionali nel nostro Paese. Un’istituzione
che può vantare una consolidata capacità di attrazione a livello internazionale, come testimonia
l'ampio e qualificato livello di partecipazione ai vari panels.
Mi pare quasi superfluo sottolineare l'importanza che attribuiamo alla nostra collaborazione con
l'Istituto e quanto sia prezioso il suo contributo in un settore come quello dello sviluppo del Diritto
Umanitario che rappresenta uno dei punti focali del tradizionale impegno del nostro Paese sia nel
quadro onusiano, sia nell'ambito dei vari fori multilaterali per il disarmo, la non proliferazione ed
il controllo degli armamenti di cui Ginevra rappresenta un polo essenziale.
L'impegno del Ministero degli Affari Esteri e la volontà di intensificare la nostra cooperazione su
tale terreno sono testimoniati non soltanto dal Patrocinio e dal sostegno finanziario concessi a tale
evento, ma anche dalla significativa presenza di rappresentanti del Ministero, alla guida di strutture di rilevante importanza in rapporto ai temi trattati.
Saluto a questo proposito con piacere la presenza, in qualità di Chair del Panel relativo alla V sessione della tavola Rotonda, dell'Ambasciatore Francesco Azzarello, neo-direttore dell'Autorità nazionale per le autorizzazioni dei materiali di armamento (UAMA) del Ministero degli Affari Esteri
e già ambasciatore all'Aja nonché Rappresentante Permanente italiano presso l'OPCW
(l’Organizzazione per la Proibizione delle Armi Chimiche), del cui Consiglio Esecutivo è stato
Presidente.
Prima di svolgere alcune considerazioni sui principali temi in agenda, mi permetta, Signor Presidente di condividere un ricordo di carattere personale. Vorrei cogliere questa occasione per rendere omaggio alla memoria dell'Ambasciatore Maurizio Moreno, ex Presidente dell'Istituto che purtroppo ci ha lasciato recentemente. L'Ambasciatore Moreno è stato uno dei miei più cari maestri
avendo collaborato a lungo con lui durante la mia carriera, in particolare quando era Rappresentante Permanente d'Italia alla NATO. Lo ricordo con particolare affetto in tale circostanza nella
consapevolezza dell’importanza da lui attribuita alle attività dell'Istituto ed in particolare all'annuale tavola rotonda.
But with your permission, Mr. President, now I would like to continue in English.
I am very pleased to note that the themes that will be addressed during this round table are very
relevant to our work conducted in Geneva, in the framework of the Conference on Disarmament
and of the other organs of the UN disarmament machinery, as well as in many other disarmament
and arms control processes relating to both conventional arms and weapons of mass destruction.
Armed conflicts and warfare are, as they have always been, dynamic phenomena. For a few decades now, non-international armed conflicts have increased in number and intensity, leading to a
necessary adjustment of the rules of warfare that were previously aimed at regulating only international, State-to-State armed conflicts. Armed non-state actors have risen to the fore, occupying a
place previously dominated by governmental forces, and their action in war defies traditional laws
and principles. Access to weapons, especially conventional weapons, has become easier, as production technologies are easily replicated and weapons materials and components are easily procured. Finally, the growing pace of scientific and technological advances, that involves all domains of our life, has an impact on the development and use of weapons, and in general also on
the security sector.
The development of more and more sophisticated weapons, means, and methods of warfare, and
their possible humanitarian impacts, pose new challenges to the international community, not only
domestically, where their compatibility with the rules and principles of international humanitarian
law must be assessed, but also internationally, where their use must be regulated, and is, in some
cases, prohibited.
As the reality of warfare changes, the legal framework designed to regulate it must also evolve.
Addressing these new developments requires a complex multidisciplinary approach, which takes
into account security as well as legal and humanitarian dimensions. At the same time, it requires
us to constantly reaffirm our commitment to the respect for, and promotion of, existing International Humanitarian Law.
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Italy fully shares the guiding principles of IHL and is deeply involved in their promotion and effective implementation. In this regard, I would like to underline that International Humanitarian
Law is an integral component of training programmes for our Armed Forces.
Italy is indeed a party to all the Conventions that prohibit or restrict weapons due to their excessively injurious or indiscriminate effects.
In particular, Italy plays a leading role in the Convention on anti-personnel landmines and the
Convention on cluster munitions. Both Conventions have written a new, fundamental chapter of
International Humanitarian Law. In this regard, let me recall that Italy completed the destruction
of its entire stockpile of cluster munitions and related sub-munitions on 31st October 2015, five
years ahead of the deadline established by the Convention.
Since our ratification of the Ottawa Convention, we have devoted close to 50m EUR to clearance,
stockpile destruction and victim assistance activities in relation to any kind of explosive remnants
of war. Last January, we assumed the Chairmanship of the United Nations Mine Action Support
Group for the next two years.
Without entering into the details of the several issues that we daily address in our work in the different disarmament fora in Geneva, let me share a few thoughts on some of the topics that this
meeting will discuss.
One of the themes that will be treated during this workshop is represented by the issue of Lethal
Autonomous Weapons Systems. While an internationally agreed definition of LAWS does not yet
exist, we consider these as systems that could select targets and decide when to use force, and
would be entirely beyond human control.
As you are aware, the legal, ethical, and operational implications of the development of such systems and of their possible future use have been addressed in several meetings held in Geneva in
the framework of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons. This issue will be at the center of attention during the upcoming Review Conference of the Convention, set to take place in
December in Geneva, which will consider the creation of a Group of Governmental Experts tasked
with deepening discussions on the LAWS issue. Italy has actively participated in this work and is
firmly committed to continuing to do so. In this regard, I cannot but express the hope that our cooperation with the International Institute of Humanitarian Law of Sanremo will further increase, in
light of the strong connection between its expertise and the work awaiting us in this domain.
Another issue that draws much attention and concern from the international community is represented by the increasing use of Improvised Explosive Devices, so-called IEDs, in both noninternational and international armed conflict, as well as in non-conflict situations, in particular in
the perpetration of terrorist acts. Italy shares the concern with the use of IEDs. We have been actively engaged in the work of the CCW on this issue and support any initiative aiming at identifying effective measures to prevent IED use and counter their destructive impacts.
The increasing involvement of non-state actors in conflict, and their possible access to weapons of
mass destruction, raise serious and legitimate concerns in the international community, which Italy
fully shares, particularly in relation to terrorist acts. In this regard, we reiterate our support for the
full implementation of UNSCR 1540, and stress the importance of a successful outcome of its Review process by the end of this year.
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In concluding, Mr. President, I would like to commend the initiative of this workshop as an example of interaction between the political, diplomatic, military, and academic domains that Italy has
always considered central to effectively respond to the evolving challenges of the international security environment. The contribution of academic and research institutions, NGOs and other civil
society organizations, especially in the form of technical knowledge and experience from the field,
continues to remain central in our work to reaffirm and promote the crucial role of International
Humanitarian Law.
I look forward to the discussions of this workshop and to the contribution that this initiative will
certainly make to the ongoing work on these diverse, complex, and highly relevant issues in today’s world.
Thank you, Mr. President.
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