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Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) is pictured above with Associate Professor Ken Rutherford of Southwest Missouri State University, at a world conference in Dublin in May that was convened to launch a worldwide treaty to ban the use of cluster weapons.  Senator Leahy and Ken Rutherford have long been partners in their crusade to end the use of antipersonnel landmines.  In 1993, Ken Rutherford became a bilateral lower leg amputee after his vehicle ran over a landmine while conducting humanitarian work in Somalia.  Now Senator Leahy and Ken Rutherford are teaming up again, to help reduce the civilian casualties caused by cluster munitions, which contain small bomblets that are sometimes used in or near civilian settlements.  On June 3, Leahy and Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) introduced a joint resolution calling on the U.S. to sign the new treaty, forged in Dublin by 111 nations, to ban cluster munitions.  Click here to read more.

Since coming to the Senate, Senator Leahy has been active in the international effort to ban the production, export and use of anti-personnel landmines.  In 1992, Leahy wrote the first law enacted by any government to prohibit the export of these weapons.  He has worked in Congress to develop programs to assist mine victims, including establishing a special fund in the foreign aid budget.  The Leahy War Victims Fund provides $10 million annually to address the needs of disabled victims of conflict, particularly mine victims.  Leahy has also worked to establish programs at the State and Defense Departments to support humanitarian de-mining.

In 2005, the Nairobi Review Conference of the Anti-Personnel Min-Ban Treaty convened, marking a milestone that few would have thought possible five years ago.

The 144 nations that have joined the treaty and the International Campaign to Ban Landmines together have shown that the goal of a worldwide landmine ban is within reach.  But it will remain beyond the world�s grasp as long as the United States, Russia and China refuse to join this effort.

Our country has made many contributions to the effort to de-mine areas of the world where landmines pose the greatest danger to innocent civilians, but our refusal to join the treaty gives nations that are the worst offenders an excuse to do the same.  The Clinton Administration made a strong commitment to find alternatives to these indiscriminate weapons.  Leahy is concerned that the Bush Administration did not participate in this important conference.  Leahy is hopeful that the U.S. can begin to look for constructive ways to lead the world toward the goal of ending the use of these deadly weapons.