Global clearance of cluster munition remnants reaches record high

Mine Action Review today published its annual report Clearing Cluster Munition Remnants 2025, ahead of the Thirteenth Meeting of States Parties to the Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM), taking place in Geneva 16–19 September.

The report finds that global clearance of land suspected or confirmed to be contaminated by cluster munition remnants (CMR) reached a record 227.9km² in 2024 – an increase of almost 18% on the previous year’s total. In the same period, more than 133,600 unexploded submunitions were destroyed, also a sharp rise on 2023.

As in previous years, Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR) achieved the largest clearance of any country, recording 71.7km² cleared – the highest annual figure for a State Party since the adoption of the CCM in 2008 – and destroying 71,106 submunitions. Significant progress was also made in Ukraine, a State not party to the Convention, which cleared 11km² and destroyed 25,893 submunitions, reflecting the huge scale of contamination caused by the ongoing war. Together, the five most heavily affected countries – Cambodia, Iraq, Lao PDR, Ukraine, and Vietnam – accounted for 90% of all CMR clearance worldwide.

Globally, at least 24 States and two other areas remain affected by cluster munition remnants, including 10 States Parties to the CCM (Afghanistan, Chad, Chile, Germany, Iraq, Lao PDR, Lebanon, Mauritania, South Sudan, and Somalia). Based on Mine Action Review’s assessment of the extent of AP mine contamination, Lao PDR is massively contaminated with over 1,000 square kilometres affected. Heavy CMR contamination (covering 100km2–1,000km2) exists in Cambodia, Iraq, Ukraine, and Vietnam. In the other States and territories, the extent of CMR contamination is medium or light.

Clearance by States Parties in 2024 totalled 84.55km², up 6% on 2023. Progress in addressing CMR contamination varied between States Partis, but no State Party declared fulfilment of its CCM Article 4 clearance obligations in 2024 or 2025 to-date, and none is currently on track to meet its deadline by the Third Review Conference of the CCM in 2026. However, Mine Action Review assesses that with sufficient funding, political will, and safe access, eight States Parties (Afghanistan, Chad, Chile, Germany, Lebanon, Mauritania, Somalia, and South Sudan) could complete clearance by the Fourth Review Conference in 2031.

“The record clearance of cluster munition remnants in 2024 is a major achievement, and Lao PDR shows what is possible when sustained investment and political will come together,” said Lucy Pinches, Project Manager of Mine Action Review. “Yet progress remains uneven, and only through renewed commitment and resources can States Parties meet their clearance obligations under the Convention and protect civilians from the devastating impact of these weapons.”