Costa Rica was actively involved in the process to develop a Political Declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas, and was among the first group of states to endorse the Political Declaration in Dublin in November 2022. Costa Rica regularly delivered statements throughout the consultations towards a Political Declaration, as well as raising concerns around explosive weapons in populated areas and expressing support for a Political Declaration in other multilateral forums. Early in the consultation process Costa Rica delineated key elements of a Political Declaration on explosive weapons in populated areas including: a commitment to avoid the use of explosive weapons in populated and urban environments due to the great impact and harm caused to civilians and vital infrastructure; recognition of the direct and indirect impact on urban infrastructure of explosive weapons use; recognition of the psychological effects for the victims and their families, as well as the inhabitants of the affected communities; underlining the need to act in compliance with international humanitarian law and international human rights law and the need to develop effective measures to increase such compliance; promotion of cooperation and exchange of good practices as well as information gathering on harms caused; recognition that effective and timely attention and assistance should be given to victims of explosive weapons in populated and urban settings, in all its aspects – physical, psychological, and economic; to ensure that the recognition of assistance will be extended to the families of the victims and affected communities.”1
These were repeated themes throughout Costa Rica’s statements to the consultations, where it repeatedly emphasised that the Declaration should recognise the full range of direct and indirect, short and long-term humanitarian impacts – including displacement, increased poverty, and psychological trauma – of explosive weapons in populated areas use, especially of explosive weapons with wide area effects.2 At the fourth round of consultations in June 2022, Costa Rica said that although not fully perfect, the draft demonstrates an energetic rejection by the international community to attacks against civilians and other protected people, as well as to the use of explosive weapons in populated areas.3 At the signing ceremony in Dublin in 2022, Costa Rica recalled the harmful direct and indirect effects of the use of explosive weapons in populated areas, including to physical and mental health, and the environment. It commended the participation of civil society during the process, and said that the Declaration is a sign of hope for the future. It highlighted the five biggest producers of explosive weapons have signed the Declaration, and expressed hope for its implementation.4
Statements and positions
Costa Rica has frequently spoken on explosive weapons in populated areas in multilateral forums, primarily to call attention to the devastating humanitarian impacts, to condemn the harms caused to civilians, and to call for action to better protect civilians from harm. For example, at the UN General Assembly First Committee in 2021, Costa Rica condemned the use of explosive weapons in populated areas and called on member states to support a strong Political Declaration on strengthening the protection of civilians from humanitarian harm arising from the use of explosive weapons in populated areas.5 At the 77th UN General Assembly First Committee General Debate, Costa Rica welcomed the conclusion of the negotiations on the Political Declaration, and applauded Ireland for its leadership throughout the process. 6
At the UN Security Council open debates on the protection of civilians in conflict, Costa Rica also repeatedly raised concerns around and urged action on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. In 2018, for example, Costa Rica described the use of explosive weapons in urban areas as “simply unacceptable”, noting that it “constitutes a huge humanitarian challenge in current conflicts”7 and in 2019 reiterated its call for parties to armed conflict to end use of explosive weapons with wide area effects in populated areas, recalling the devastating humanitarian impact such weapons have on civilians and civilian infrastructure.8 In 2013, Costa Rica supported calls for parties to conflict to “avoid the use of explosives within or close to densely populated areas and or explosive weapons with wide-ranging effects” and reiterated support for international efforts aimed at putting an end to explosive weapons use in densely populated areas.9 At the UN Security Council Open Debate on Children and Armed Conflict on 5 July 2023, Costa Rica stressed the importance of an intersectional approach to ensure adequate and child-sensitive responses to the use of explosive weapons in densely populated areas.10
Alongside its individual statements, Costa Rica has repeatedly aligned with other states to deliver statements on explosive weapons in populated areas. In 2018, Costa Rica joined 22 otherLatin American and Caribbean states at the Santiago Regional Meeting on Protecting Civilians from the Use of Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas in 2018, resulting in the Santiago Communiqué in which the participating states agreed to take further action on the issue11. In 2018 and 2019, Chile joined some 50 and 71 states respectively to endorse joint statements on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas at the UN General Assembly First Committee, calling attention to the devastating and long-lasting humanitarian impact of the use of explosive weapons in populated areas and urging states to reverse the trend of high levels of civilian harm 12.
Costa Rica also supported a statement delivered by Austria to the World Humanitarian Summit Roundtable on Upholding the Norms that Safeguard Humanity in May 2016, in which it committed to raising international awareness of use of explosive weapons in populated areas, supporting the collection of data on direct civilian harm and the exchanging of good practices and lessons as well as look for effective measures to strengthen the respect for international humanitarian law, including an international Political Declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas.13 Costa Rica has also condemned the use of explosive weapons in populated areas in numerous joint statements, including as a member of the Human Security Network at the 2013 and 2014 UN Security Council open debates on the protection of civilians in armed conflict14 In these statements, the Human Security Network called for all parties to an armed conflict to refrain from using explosive weapons with a wide impact area in populated areas, emphasising that these weapons are indiscriminate within their zones of detonation and therefore pose unacceptable risks to civilians.